Jessica Doepker, DeWitt
Few programs in the state rely more on the connection between school, community, and coaching than DeWitt’s girls’ tennis program and much of that connection is strengthened by assistant coach Jessica Doepker. A longtime teacher --- she has spent nearly twenty years as a middle school teacher, almost all of them in English Language Arts or social studies -- and multi-sport coach, Jessica brings a unique blend of classroom experience, competitive tennis background, and deep passion for female athletics to the courts each spring.
Her coaching career began early. She coached summer softball in college, then a JV tennis team her senior year, and has since coached softball, volleyball, and tennis across both middle school and high school levels.
But tennis has always held a special place for her—a legacy passed down through her mother, Sally Eichorn, a Title IX-era athlete who played three sports at Michigan State University and later coached Ithaca High School’s varsity girls tennis team for 15 years. In 1994, she was named the MHSTeCA Class C/D Coach of the Year.
“I grew up on the courts,” Jessica explains. “My mom brought me everywhere with her. She was passionate, organized, and dedicated, and I wanted to give kids the same experience she gave her players.”
Jessica picked up a racquet at age five and spent her childhood hitting with her mother’s teams or taking lessons at the Midland Tennis Center. Although she originally expected to play college softball, tennis kept finding its way back into her life. After transferring to Alma College, she surprised even herself by choosing tennis over softball and went on to play 1 and 2 Singles and 1 Doubles for Alma.
Her journey into high school coaching followed naturally. When she arrived in DeWitt, she applied for an opening in the girls' tennis program and instantly felt at home.
“Coaching is rewarding in a way that teaching sometimes isn’t,” she says. “Players choose to be there. They’re motivated. They want to grow.”
Jessica considers herself fortunate to have a coaching partner in the varsity coach, Michael Hitchcock, with whom she works alongside easily. “I truly don’t know how she can manage to be as successful as she is in life,” says Mike. “She balances a schedule that I can’t imagine doing.”
That’s because she is not only a middle school teacher but also a wife and mother to four girls ranging from ages 3 to 15. In spite of that, she leads a JV team that goes from 24 to 36 players depending on the year. And she has been doing this for 10 years
“She knows how to coach,” says Mike. “She can read what the players need to hear to make the right decisions on the court. When varsity players find out she is going to be at a match or tournament, the girls get excited. They love having her around and look forward to her advice.”
“Tennis is a mental game, and figuring out the mindfulness of it all is powerful,” she says. “Those are lessons kids take with them long after a match ends.”
“Her won-loss record speaks for itself,” says Mike. “She typically loses fewer than three matches a season as a JV coach. For the 2025 season, she was undefeated. Our JV team will normally come home with multiple championships each year and we are not a team trained at a club. These kids range from beginners to those who have taken a few lessons.”
But to be clear, Jessica’s impact on DeWitt tennis comes not from titles or headlines, but from the daily work of building confident, resilient athletes—something her mother did for decades, and something she now passes on to a new generation.
Kenny Geomain, Dearborn Divine Child
Assistant coaches are valuable in that they provide much needed guidance with regard to the sheer number of kids who now play the game for their high schools, especially in view of the No-Cut movement. The increasingly large numbers make it impossible for a head coach to give proper attention to everyone. Aside from serving as coaches of the JV teams, assistants often attend varsity matches, help run tournaments, and provide backup in any number of the day-to-day requirements for managing a team.
But as a newly minted data analyst fresh out of Madonna University, Kenny Germain has added another dimension to the job, one that will surely catch on at other squads in the future. A 2024 graduate, he created a spreadsheet that included team and individual statistics which highlighted comparisons. “The spreadsheet showed the team – in living color– how their hard work and commitment had enabled them to drastically improve their results from the previous season,” says head coach Ken Germain, Kenny’s father.
But in his very first season as an assistant at Divine Child, Kenny did even more than that. He scheduled the team’s senior night, hired a photographer, helped prepare the program, and provided special handmade gifts for these players in their final season of representing their school. He also compiled and organized team and individual photos and distributed them. He then played a significant role in organizing the end of the year team banquet.
But, of course, he could be found on the court as well. “Kenny contributed at practices by using his athletic experience to create unique tennis specific footwork drills which challenged the team to improve their movement,” says Ken. “He also brought an excellent sports IQ to the court.”
He comes by it honestly. Kenny is one of three Ken Germains (although each has a different middle name). The Germains were and are a tennis legacy in the Dearborn area. Kenny’s grandfather and his brothers were superb players, winning junior college (Henry Ford) and college (Western Michigan) championships. The next generation which included Kenny’s father found themselves playing for Henry Ford and Olivet University. Ken’s mother as well as his aunts and uncles on that side of the family could be found on the court, often playing for teams.
But surprisingly given this legacy, tennis wasn’t Kenny’s game. Instead, he played elite level baseball from ages 8-17. His Bishop Foley teams’ accomplishments include a Catholic League championship, an MHSAA state championship, and an MHSAA runner-up finish.
Despite a minimal background in tennis and the fact that this was only his first year working with the tennis team, Kenny’s youth gave him the ability to connect with the kids, according to his father. “He displayed exceptional dedication and commitment by spending an immense amount of time outside of his job at practices as well as working outside of team hours that made the season unforgettable for all of the players. I cannot imagine anyone putting more of himself into his coaching job than Kenny has.”
Speed training and footwork drills were always a HUGE part of my training, as well as my high sports IQ and I believe I have an elite level of both,” says Kenny. “When beginning coaching, I expected my role to be focused on building athleticism, teaching footwork, and coaching strategy. I did all of these things, but then I quickly found out how much I loved coaching and decided to fully invest myself. On top of all of the on court stuff that was required from us, I wanted to do as much as possible off the court to help our teams succeed.”
And he certainly has as evidenced by his spreadsheets. “I have always had a love for sports analytics and look forward to using it in any way I can,” he says “I tracked each player's score for every match, listed their records and opponents, and calculated their results and did a team comparison to their results in the year prior (before my dad and I took over). This easily laid out for the players how much their hard work paid off.”
“The feeling of teaching these kids, giving them a good time, and feeling like you left a positive impact on them is like none other.”
Elsa Peterson, Portage Central
In 2023, Elsa Peterson volunteered to help out with both the boys and girls teams at Portage Central. “I began volunteering my freshman year of college with the girls team as a way to earn volunteer hours for the honors college at Western (WMU),” she says. “I am from the Kalamazoo area and attended Schoolcraft schools for the majority of my K-12 life. However, I graduated from Portage Central.
“I began playing tennis in 6th grade because it was one of the few sports we could play competitively at that age at Schoolcraft,” she continues. “I transferred to Portage Central my junior year of high school and played on the team for my last two years. I made it into the quarter finals of ‘states’ every year that I played tennis in high school (including at Schoolcraft).”
Thus, varsity coach Nancy Martin knew what she was getting in a volunteer and she certainly hasn’t been disappointed. “She is knowledgeable, a leader, respected, and diligent in terms of her work ethic.” This is high praise coming from a recent Hall of Famer who is known for a no-nonsense approach to leading her tennis teams.
Over three years, Elsa has certainly put in the time and the work. “She traveled to all events with us,” says Nancy. “She stepped in when and where she was needed at tournaments for both the girls and boys and played a vital role in these events.
“She steps in to coach individuals even though she might not have had much of a relationship with them. But she does so without hesitation. She quickly picks up on the strengths and weaknesses of players and their opponents and puts that knowledge into a game plan immediately.”
Also, as the JV coach, Elsa’ teams have gone through each season undefeated in the past two years.
“I loved helping coach the team so much that when Nancy needed someone to take over for the boys JV team I jumped at the opportunity,” she says.
Nancy testifies that even as a young female only slightly older than the boys on her JV teams, Elsa has had no problem maintaining order and discipline while gaining their respect and appreciation.
And to top it all off, she does all this while maintaining a collegiate schedule. She is a senior at WMU graduating in May. “My degree will be in Biomedical Sciences with minors in Chemistry and Psychology.”
Although she initially wanted to be a veterinarian, these volunteer experiences she has had coaching for PC has changed her mind. She is currently teaching at a special education school and am interested in getting a graduate degree in Special Education and becoming a BCBA (board certified behavior analyst
As such, Elsa not only volunteers to coach tennis at her alma mater but has helped Nancy with the ACEing Autism program, an effort started by Coach Martin to get these kids into the game.
“Elsa is one of the very best assistant coaches I have worked with,” summarizes Nancy. “She is on top of every facet of tennis coaching from organizational practice plans to challenge matches to determining doubles combinations to the necessary paperwork required by the school and district. Her presence is invaluable.”Curt Woodhams, Allegan
Allegan High School tennis is comprised of a close knit community of alums. After all, the legendary Gary Ellis (they recently named the tennis courts after him) successfully led teams there for 43 years. He produced so many tennis players whose experience, both during and after their high school years, made them more than not only qualified but willing to go back and help out. More to the point, coaching at their alma mater made for a very good fit in terms of tradition.
Case in point is Damien Arthur, this year’s Girls Coach of the Year. Among other attributes (see Coach of the Year article} , Damien has recruited only assistants who once played for the Tigers.
Curt Woodhams is a classic example. “As a player he was very hard-working and coachable,” says Gary. “He was also a strong leader.”
Moreover, his time playing for the Tigers contains an on-going motivational story. “At his very first regional, he and his partner were the last match on the court,” says Gary. “They were playing the #1 seed that had beaten them 6-2,6-1 the week before. Allegan had 17 points and needed just one more win to qualify for state.
“They split sets, which was exciting in itself, but quickly went down 5-2. Even with that, they still thought they could pull it out. They didn't lose another game winning 7-5 and sending us to state. Furthermore, they reached the quarters at state before losing. I use that story at least once a year when talking to players about one of the great things about our sport - as long as you have one point left you have a chance.”
“I’ve always loved the sport and enjoyed working with young athletes, so staying involved with the Allegan Tennis Program felt like a natural fit,” says Curt. “When I was asked to help, I didn’t hesitate. It’s been incredibly rewarding to give back to a program that shaped me, and it’s an honor to coach alongside Gary Ellis—the man who mentored me—as well as many dedicated alumni.”
“Curt’s dedication to Allegan tennis goes far beyond the typical assistant coaching role,” says Damien. “He consistently sacrifices countless hours running open hits on Sundays, setting up and closing our field house (yes, Allegan has a field house which houses tennis courts) for our winter groups, and volunteering for our Free Winter Tennis Camp on Saturdays.
“What sets him apart is his willingness to devote himself as a volunteer in every facet of Allegan tennis from varsity and middle school coaching to both summer and winter programs. The hundreds of hours he spends contributing to the growth of our players and our program exemplify his love for the game and his dedication to our community. He has been doing this for four years.”
It isn’t as if he doesn’t have a day job. Curt works as a Logistics Manager for Advanced Architectural Products, where he oversees the coordination and movement of materials to ensure efficient and timely operations. “With his unwavering support, our team has achieved a record of 31-12-3 including six tournament victories, a conference title, a regional championship, and Top Ten finishes in the state each year,” says Damien. “His commitment to the program has played a key role in these successes and more importantly, in shaping our players into better athletes and better people.”