Texas Women’s Tennis Head Coach Patty Fendick-McCain Announces Retirement

AUSTIN, Texas – Patty Fendick-McCain, who led The University of Texas women’s tennis program to nine NCAA Championship appearances, one Big 12 Championship and two Big 12 tournament titles, announced her retirement Monday as UT’s head women’s tennis coach after nine years of service.  Fendick-McCain plans to retire from college tennis and end a 17-year coaching career that began with an eight-year stint as the head women’s tennis coach at the University of Washington.

“It is difficult to leave college coaching after pouring everything I have into it for 17 years,” Fendick-McCain said.  “But, I am looking forward to focusing on my family – my husband, Scott, my two daughters and my son.  I thank UT for the opportunity to coach at such a great institution.  I will miss all of the student-athletes that have worked so hard for us and all of the friends I have made at UT.”

Fendick-McCain led the Longhorns to three Round-of-16 appearances at the NCAA Championships (2008, 2010, 2012) and sent Texas to the second round or beyond in all nine NCAA Championship appearances.

The Longhorns ranked among the top-25 in the final ITA team poll seven times under Fendick-McCain, including each of the last five seasons.  She completes her college coaching career with a 281-149 (.653) overall record, including a 158-83 (.656) mark in her nine seasons at Texas.

“Patty has come full circle as a former NCAA singles champion, accomplished pro tennis player and now a collegiate coach,” said UT Women’s Athletics Director Chris Plonsky.  “She has developed several of the best players in collegiate tennis here at Texas, and her teams have been Big 12 title contenders on a consistent basis.  We are grateful for her work at Texas.

“Patty is a dedicated parent, and her decision to focus more time on her beautiful, talented and active children is an understandable one,” Plonsky added.  “She is departing a team that is young, capable and competitive, and we know the coach inheriting the program will succeed thanks to the foundation of student-athletes Patty has recruited here to UT.”

Fendick-McCain led Texas to a share of the Big 12 regular season championship in 2007 and to Big 12 tournament titles in 2012 and 2013.  Two Longhorns – Aeriel Ellis and Breaunna Addison – earned All-America honors under Fendick-McCain.

In April, Addison became UT’s first Big 12 Player of the Year since 1999.  A season ago, Addison became the first UT freshman and the third Longhorn ever to reach the singles semifinals at the NCAA Championships.  During her nine seasons in Austin, her UT players accumulated 16 Big 12 individual titles, 25 All-Big 12 selections and 29 Academic All-Big 12 honors.

Fendick-McCain excelled in collegiate and professional tennis as a player before entering the coaching ranks.  She won two NCAA singles titles at Stanford (1986-87) and was selected in 2006 as the NCAA Division I Women’s Tennis Most Outstanding Student-Athlete of the sport’s first 25 years.  She also was named as the MVP of the NCAA’s All-Decade Team for the 1980’s.

Fendick-McCain won the 1991 Australian Open doubles title with Mary Joe Fernandez and reached the doubles semifinals or beyond at eight additional Grand Slam events.  She also reached the singles quarterfinals at the 1990 Australian Open and was ranked among the world’s top-20 in singles.