Rob Oertel, Head Coach
Phone: 859-622-2133
Email:
rob.oertel@eku.edu
Alma Mater: Wisconsin-Stout '86
Year at EKU: Ninth season
* 2009, 2007 OVC Men’s Tennis Co-Coach of the Year
* 1995 MVC Men’s Tennis Coach of the Year
Rob Oertel is entering his ninth season as the head coach for both the men’s and women’s tennis teams at Eastern Kentucky. The 2009 season was a memorable one for the Colonels as both the men and women went undefeated against OVC competition for the first time in program history. The EKU women went on to earn a berth in the 2009 NCAA championships.
In his eight years at EKU, Oertel has taken the Colonels from the cellar of the OVC to a consistent contender in the season-ending OVC tournament. He has coached 18All-OVC players, two OVC Players of the Year, one OVC Freshman of the Year, one Academic All-American and one OVC Sportsmanship Award winner while in charge of the Eastern program.
Oertel has almost 20 years experience as a Division I head coach after previously serving four years at Denver and seven at Indiana State. He handled both the men’s and women’s programs at Indiana State during the 1989-90 season as well as at Denver in the 1996-97 campaign and spring of 1999.
“One of my primary goals when I took this position was to raise this program to national respectability,” Oertel said. “I can say with great pride that we are now at that level. I hope we can keep building on our achievements.”
The University of Denver was a Division II program when Oertel took the helm in 1996. By his fourth season, he lifted the Pioneers to a very competitive status at the Division I level with an overall record of 16-8.
Before joining the Pioneer staff at Denver, Oertel recorded an overall record of 95-73 with the Indiana State men’s tennis team. During the 1994-95 season, Oertel guided the Sycamores to a regular season Missouri Valley Conference co-championship and second-place finish in the conference tournament.
Oertel earned the 1995 MVC Coach of the Year award as ISU finished 18-9 overall with key victories over Tulsa, Purdue, Kansas and Marquette. In addition, Indiana State won its final 12 regular season dual matches to earn a berth in the NCAA team championships. The Sycamores advanced to the final 24 in the 1995 NCAA tournament before falling to Arizona State.
A native of West Allis, Wis., Oertel graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Stout in 1986 with a degree in business administration. In 1988, he began his coaching career at St. Mary’s Catholic School in Monroe, Mich., as the assistant coach. Next, he assumed the head coaching reins at his alma mater, Wisconsin-Stout, before moving to Indiana State.
In 1991, he earned his master’s of science degree from Indiana State in physical education with an emphasis in sports administration. Oertel has further enhanced his extensive coaching experience by working with players of all ages as a tennis pro in the Fiji Islands, Michigan and Wisconsin.
As a collegiate tennis player, Oertel was one of the most decorated athletes to ever play for the Wisconsin-Stout Blue Devils. He became the first tennis player in Blue Devil history to earn All-American honors while also playing on four consecutive conference championship teams.
Oertel’s NCAA Division III national ranking peaked at No. 13 in singles and No. 4 in doubles during his senior campaign. In 1996, Oertel was inducted into the Wisconsin-Stout Athletics Hall of Fame.
Collegiate Coaching Experience
Wisconsin-Stout (Head Coach, 1989)
Indiana State (Head Coach, 1990-96)
Denver (Head Coach, 1997-00)
Eastern Kentucky (Head Coach, 2002-present)
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