Twelve-Time Horizon League Coach of the Year
(2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021)
Shannon Tully has cultivated a program engrained in excellence at UIC since becoming head coach in 2001. The twelve-time Horizon League Coach of the Year is the winningest tennis coach in the conference's history, owning a remarkable 184-25 record all-time against Horizon League opponents.
The unprecedented 12-time Horizon League Coach of the Year and 2013 Wilson/ITA Coach of the Year for the Midwest Region boasts a career record of 329 wins with 163 losses in 22Â seasons at the helm of the tennis program. The Ohio native has made a huge mark on a program that has set the bar high in the Horizon League. Tully has guided the Flames to 14 conference championships and 14 NCAA Tournament appearances in her time at UIC, and has achieved many other accomplishments along the way.
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Tully guided the Flames through their inaugural year in the Missouri Valley Conference during the 2022-23 season. The team finished with a 12-10 overall record and a 5-3 record in league play. In their first year in the Valley, Tully played a pivotal role in helping many Flames earn recognition from the conference. Paula Rodriguez Gregoris was named to the All-MVC team, Agnes Gustafsson received All-Select honors, and Natalia Nikolopoulou was acknowledged as the Newcomer of the Year. Additionally, Natalia Nikolopoulou was selected for the Scholar-Athlete Team, while Cora-Lynn von Dungern and Agnes Gustafsson received honorable mentions.
In 2021-22, Tully coached Agnes Gustafsson to the Horizon League Player of the Year award. Three Flames made the All-Horizon League teams, and two were named to the conference's All-Academic Team.
The 2020-21 season saw Tully lead the Flames to their fourth straight Horizon League regular season title and their second straight league tournament championship. She was named Coach of the Year, and placed four players on the All-Horizon League teams. In addition, Lucie Prochazkova earned the conference's Herb Foster Sportsmanship Award. The Flames rolled through the conference tournament and qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the 14th time in program history. UIC's regular season title was the program's fifth overall, in the nine years that the Horizon League has recognized a winner.
Tully was included in the all-time women's tennis coaches Top 50 winning percentage list by ITA as of the spring of 2020. She was also on the ITA's active top 50 list for winning percentage and total wins.Â
With 33-consecutive conference wins already in place at the start of her first season in 2001-02, Tully was able to carry on the longest win streak in NCAA history, that dated back to the 1996 season, with 146-straight conference wins before the Flames dropped a 4-3 decision to Detroit on April 6, 2013.
Under Tully in 2010, the Flames ranked ninth in the final Division I Women's Midwest Rankings administered by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). This marked the highest-ever regional ranking for UIC and the first time the Flames finished a season ranked in the top 10 of its region. The team reached the feat again for another ninth-place ranking in 2012 and placed 10th in 2013.
All in all, Tully has coached 10 Horizon League Player of the Year selections and five league Newcomer of the Year winners. UIC Hall of Famer Mariya Kovaleva was honored as the Horizon League Player of the Year for the fourth-straight year in her senior year, and the first player in the conference history to do so.
In 2019, Tully's team received its first NCAA Public Recognition Award for achieving an Academic Progress Rate (APR) in the top 10 percent of all women's tennis programs. Additionally, Tully was rewarded in April 2014 as one-of-five recipients of the UIC Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs (VCSA) Outstanding Staff Award for demonstrating outstanding levels of professionalism and enthusiasm while providing exceptional service to Student Affairs.
In addition to her work at UIC, Tully has served on the ITA Midwest Regional Committee and on the NCAA Regional Committee.
A 1996 graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Tully played four seasons for the Badgers from 1991-1995 and served as the team's captain for the 1994-95 season. In 1993, Tully was honored as the Big Ten's Sportswoman of the Year and received Academic All-Big Ten recognition every season she played.
Tully earned an MBA with a concentration in marketing and management from UIC in 2006.
Tully's Career Record
| Season |
Conference
(including tournament) |
Overall |
| 2001-02 |
10-0 (HL) |
16-10 |
| 2002-03 |
10-0 (HL) |
17-7 |
| 2003-04 |
10-0 (HL) |
15-8 |
| 2004-05 |
10-0 (HL) |
13-11 |
| 2005-06 |
10-0 (HL) |
13-11 |
| 2006-07 |
10-0 (HL) |
15-8 |
| 2007-08 |
10-0 (HL) |
16-6 |
| 2008-09 |
10-0 (HL) |
15-8 |
| 2009-10 |
10-0 (HL) |
20-4 |
| 2010-11 |
10-0 (HL) |
18-5 |
| 2011-12 |
10-0 (HL) |
18-4 |
| 2012-13 |
8-1 (HL) |
16-6 |
| 2013-14 |
5-4 (HL) |
8-13 |
| 2014-15 |
6-4 (HL) |
10-11 |
| 2015-16 |
7-3 (HL) |
13-8 |
| 2016-17 |
8-2 (HL) |
17-6 |
| 2017-18 |
9-2 (HL) |
15-7 |
| 2018-19Â Â |
10-1 (HL) |
20-6 |
| 2019-20 |
N/A* |
8-2*Â Â Â Â Â Â |
| 2020-21 |
11-1 (HL) |
19-6 |
| 2021-22 |
5-3 (HL) |
15-6 |
| 2022-23 |
5-4 (MVC) |
12-10 |
| Total |
184-25 |
329-163Â |
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*2019-20 season shortened due to COVID-19 pandemic.
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