ITA assistant coach of the year
Davis Elkins has transformed the Swarthmore Men's Tennis program during his three years with the team. During this past fall season, Elkins coached the team on his own while Head Coach Jason Box was on parental leave. Not only did the team culture remain intact, it improved. He also helped coordinate the team's international trip in January, taking on a lot of the organizational efforts. Elkins also plans team practices on his own at times. The team is very lucky to have essentially a second head coach as a member of the coaching staff.
In addition to his responsibilities on court, Elkins is the recruiting coordinator, handling 75% of recruiting. This season, the team was as high as No. 2 in the South region and No. 10 nationally. The team won the Centennial Conference regular season and were 19-1 heading into the conference tournament.
A Quote from the Head Coach
"The main reason Davis is such an outstanding coach is because he's an incredible person at his core. He brings relentlessly positive energy, will do anything for his players, is always available to listen to and support others, and has conviction in his personal values. Our team’s success is largely due to the passion and effort Davis has brought to Swarthmore the past three years.
He is responsible for building a unique team culture where the players share mutual responsibility for results, can speak up and always be respected, and appreciate every moment of time spent together. In positive situations - such as sharing team lunch at the dining hall or playing games in the van on road trips - and difficult ones - like having tough conversations with players hoping for more lineup time - Davis always knows what the moment needs to make his players feel like members of a unified team. I consider him a great friend and am thankful for the massive and lasting impact he's made on Swarthmore Men's Tennis." - Head Coach Jason Box