Former Middlebury men's tennis coach Bob Hansen's remarkable coaching career has reached new heights as he has been selected as one of four inductees into the 2025 Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Men's Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame. Hansen's impact on the sport and the lives of his players is truly extraordinary.

Honor and Gratitude

Hansen expressed his deep honor upon receiving this tremendous acknowledgment. He emphasized his gratitude to his many mentors, colleagues, and parents who had trusted him to lead and care for the incredible student-athletes he had the privilege to coach. Their courage, joy, passion, commitment, vision, and tireless effort had made his coaching journey a source of great pleasure from beginning to end.

Middlebury Years

During his nine-year tenure as the head coach at Middlebury (2011 - 2020), Hansen established a rich postseason tradition. The team advanced to the NCAA Tournament each year, achieving a single-season record of 25 wins (25 - 4) and capturing the national title in 2018. Under his leadership, the Panthers advanced to the semifinals in six consecutive seasons (2014 - 2019) and appeared in the finals three times. The squad also claimed four NESCAC Championships during this period. Over his nine campaigns, Hansen compiled a remarkable record of 163 - 39. He coached Middlebury's first two NCAA Doubles Champions and the program's first NCAA Singles Champion. Additionally, he guided an ITA Singles Champion and an ITA Doubles Champion during his time at Middlebury.During the pandemic years when most of his time was spent as the associate head coach without competitions, the Panthers returned to the courts in the 2021 - 22 season. Hansen played a crucial role in leading the team back to the NCAA Semifinals. Alongside current head coach Andrew Thomson '10, the duo guided Stan Morris '22 to the ITA Cup and NCAA Singles Titles. Morris was the second NCAA Singles Champion that Hansen had coached at Middlebury and the seventh overall.

UCSC Coaching Legacy

Before joining the Panthers, Hansen served as the head coach at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC) for 30 years. He was the creator of the UCSC tennis program and led the team to seven NCAA Team Championships and three ITA Indoor Team titles. During his tenure at UCSC, he coached five NCAA Singles Champions, 10 NCAA Doubles Champions, three ITA Singles Champions, and six ITA Doubles Champions. Hansen concluded his career having coached 146 All-American selections across the two institutions. His eight NCAA Team Championships are the most in Division III men's tennis history.Hansen will be joined in this year's class by coach Michael Mullan (Swarthmore College), along with players Eric Butorac (Ball State University, Gustavus Adolphus College) and Bud Schultz (Bates College). The ITA Men's Hall of Fame Class of 2025 induction ceremony will be hosted by Gustavus Adolphus College preceding the ITA Division III Men's National Team Indoor Championships on February 20, 2025.