Eric Bracciano Lake Orion	Nancy Martin Portage Central	AnnMarie Michol Warren DeLaSalle/Utica	Oscar Rodriguez Lapeer

(click on Inductee's name to read 'description')

At the conclusion of his very successful high school playing career at Fenton High School (as a lone senior, he led his team to the state finals), Eric Bracciano was given the opportunity to teach at the Genesee Valley Tennis Club by his coach who was a pro there. “This was a big honor for me,” he says, “and this moment led the foundation for me becoming a teacher and a high-level tennis coach. I knew I wanted to coach tennis year-round and I wanted the credentials to back it up.”

So at the tender age of 19, he became a certified USPTR teaching professional. “This was a pivotal moment for me,” he says. “Coaching was very fulfilling and I was proud to be helping students to achieve their goals and aspirations.”

So once again at the age of 19, this high achiever not only embarked on a quest to earn a bachelor’s degree in English and Mathematics at U of M Dearborn on his way to a teaching certificate but at the same time, secure his first varsity high school tennis position. As opposed to others, he didn’t start as a JV coach but as the head boys and girls guy at his alma mater.

Moreover, he also honed his coaching chops at GVTC by assisting in the development of players throughout the area: Grand Blanc, Holly, Clio, and Swartz Creek; in other words, not just his own Fenton kids. In two summers while in college, he ran a  program at Flushing Valley Country Club and in the subsequent two summers, he worked at the prestigious Warwick Hills Country Club. He not only gave lessons but coached the junior team which played other club squads in the area.

Eric remained at Fenton from 1997-1998, achieving a very respectable 22-6 with the boys but enduring a bit of a struggle with a 19-11 record on the part ofthe girls. He stepped down from high school tennis coaching there but continued to add more coaching experience as a teaching pro at  GVTC.

Seven years later, he accepted a job in Lake Orion. He is an English major with a math minor and has a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership. As it turns out, the tennis job at the school opened up in the same year. “It was a natural fit,” he says. 

 It took only one year for his boys to qualify for state competition. On the girls side, sparks ignited in his favor even more due to Annie Sauer, a young lady who was not only undefeated at 1S but the No. 1 seed at the state tournament that year (she lost in the finals to Ann Arbor Pioneer). This kind of example is always sure to inspire teammates which made the future at Lake Orion promising. But then, so is the presence of a good coach.

Nevertheless, being competitive in Oakland County is, to understate, challenging. As a result, early on, Eric met with the Community Education Director to arrange to give lessons to people ages 5-7, 8-10, 11-14, high school kids, and adults. To be sure, he kept an eager eye on promising youngsters who were not only athletically gifted but eager to compete in tournaments and perhaps go on to play for the Dragons.

“Setting up community education lessons has been the foundation of improving tennis in the Lake Orion community,” he says. Since 2006, he has run a summer program similar to the one he left in the Fenton area; i.e. he trains players from Clarkston, Oxford, and Goodrich, not just his Lake Orion kids.

But these days, to take a program to another level you have to promote the game at the middle school level as well. In 2011, 28 kids tried out for the Middle School Co-Ed team in a program similar to the one that Jeff Nellis, last year’s Distinguished Service Award recipient from Ludington, runs. Hence, Lake Orion joined a league in Macomb County of teams from Utica Eisenhower, L’anse Creuse, Romeo, Chippewa Valley, Berkley, Port Huron, St. Clair, and Holly.

Eric kept these kids busy. They would play a home and home against all these schools and then end the season with a tournament. Each season would conclude with a pizza party and the bestowing of awards. In other words, appetites were wetted for more when these kids got to high school.

It has paid off. Lake Orion plays in the OAA White division. It ain’t easy when his kids come up against the likes of Rochester, Clarkston, and Rochester Adams. But over the last 20 years of coaching tennis the Dragons, the boys team has amassed a record of 160-84-12 and the girls team has tallied a 174-68-9 result.  The boys team has shared an OAA league title once and the girls team has won two league titles in that time.

 “We have had three boys achieve All State status and four girls achieve All State accolades,” he says.  “Several of our graduates have gone on to Ferris State to become certified USPTR tennis professionals and a handful of players have gone on to play Division 2 and Division 3 tennis. Some of my favorite moments have been teaming up with former players on our 4.5 USTA team when they are adults.”

What gave him his start

For Eric, tennis became an integral part of his life at age ten. “My younger brother and I would ride our bikes to Hines Park in Dearborn Hgts to play on the three courts they had there,” he says. “I grew up playing every sport – soccer, football, basketball, track and field, baseball --  in middle school. I enjoyed the practices and the games,”

“But as I entered high school, I wanted to give tennis a try,” he continues. “My freshman year, my parents signed me up for group lessons at the Genesee Valley Tennis Club in Flint. I tried out for the freshman team at Fenton High School and eventually became the 1S on that team. I moved up to 2S on the varsity squad the next year and 1S the next two seasons.”

As a player, he has continued to “move up” well after college and deep into his time as math teacher and tennis coach. He has competed in many open tennis tournaments over the years, winning over 62 singles and doubles titles.  “I have played USTA 5.0 and 4.5 tennis and have advanced to the sectionals event several times, but never have advanced to the national event,” he says. “ I believe my ability as a player has helped me to relate to many of the upper level players I have coached over the years, because I am able to relate to similar match situations.”

“A highlight of my playing career has been playing in several Pro/Am charity events raising money for Cystic Fibrosis,” he says.   “My favorite Pro/Am match of all time was playing against Todd Martin and his partner at his home club, Court One in Lansing.

“He plays tennis at a high 4.5 level,” says Troy Athens’ coach Andrew Shipp. “He is a great model in terms of showing his kids how tennis can be a wonderful sport throughout life.”

Playing at that level also means that he can train effectively with the superstars of the program. In particular, this involved Annie Sauer in 2005 who reached the state championship finals and Sienna Osborne, who qualified for the final tournament two consecutive years. She beat the Bloomfield Hills 1S in the regional final one of those years and reached the semifinals of “states” the next.

Eric is currently teaching math in Grand Blanc.  “I lived in Oxford for a number of years where I made the commute to Grand Blanc to teach, and then would drive back to Lake Orion to coach,” he says. “The commute from Oxford is about 40 minutes and the commute from Grand Blanc to Lake Orion is about 45 minutes.  I moved to Grand Blanc five years ago, so now I teach in Grand Blanc and make the drive to Lake Orion after school each day to coach.”

He also makes the drive to Haslett where he has served on the MHSTeCA Board of Directors since 2012. “His thoughts and contributions are always thoughtful and respected,” says Andrew. “Moreover, his teams always play with great sportsmanship. He drives them to work hard during the off season to perform well when they represent their school. He is a fun coach to work with and a great coach to compete against.”

In short, this high school math teacher has been a teaching pro for 28 years and a tennis coach for 44 seasons. Furthermore, he is an excellent player who can inspire his kids by example. This is impressive service both to the game and for his school, one worthy of being inducted into a group of his peers.

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Growing up in the Kalamazoo area, Nancy Martin had but one sibling, a brother eight years older who played baseball. Thus, she envisioned herself as playing that game despite the absence of Title IX at the time. However, she enrolled in a Parks and Rec tennis program at the age of 7. This became a seed that altered the course of her life.

Add to that is the fact that at age nine, she was diagnosed as a juvenile diabetic. Treatment required a round-around physical activity. “Thus, I started taking lessons and joining hitting groups on a regular basis,” she says. “It took no time for me to fall in love with the game.”

It didn’t hurt that she grew up in Portage, close to nearby Stowe Stadium with its rich tradition of excellent Kalamazoo College teams and perennial host of high school state tournaments in June and the National Junior and Boys event each August. Excellent coaching and superb role models were also available front and center.

As a result, Nancy entered USTA tournaments and never looked back. To say that she got good at the game is a gross understatement. In her junior years, she was ranked #1 in the Western Michigan Tennis Association and #12 in the Midwest Section. Eventually, she received a national ranking in the 18s.

She was a ball runner at the Boys Nationals from 1972-198. She was a member of the only National City Team for the Kalamazoo area, thus playing in the national event in Dallas in 1991. She played WMTA Wightman Club for two years.

Understandably, this very experienced player enjoyed a very successful high school career. Under Coach Sandy Peterson – a member of our 2nd Hall of Fame class – she was undefeated (26-0) at 4S at Portage Northern in her first year on the team. She played 1S the following two seasons reaching the state semifinals both years. It should be noted that the team finished 1st, 2nd, and 2nd at the state championship tournament in those three campaigns.

Having received a full scholarship at Western Michigan, Nancy played 2S and 1D for the Bronchos. She captured three MAC titles at 2nd singles and two more at the one doubles position. She was part of a team that won its first-ever conference title. She was a member of the all-conference team twice.

“Tennis has been a very important part of my life,” she says. “It has brought me together with some of the most special people and given me wonderful opportunities to travel, learn, and grow.”

But if tennis has provided much to the quality of her life, she has more than given as much back. “The best part of my life has been to coach young people,” she says. “It is my passion. My most favorite time of the year is when I can be on the court with kids.”

Armed with an impressive playing resume, Nancy went to California to accept a tennis coaching position in the summer of 1982. The school, Santa Catalina in Monterey, California, was a private girls boarding school and ran a summer program for incoming students of the school. “I was hired as the director of the tennis program which led to my being offered a teaching job after 3 summers of work there,” she says.

“I stayed there until 1995 teaching physical education and health ages K-12thy grade. There I also coached tennis to kids from all over the world, very talented players. My coaching record there was 233-8. Yes, these kids were good.

After 10 years in Monterey, Nancy transferred to Palo Alto to work at the prestigious Castilleja School, a private girls school which has graduated the daughters of luminaries such as Steve Jobs. This is a middle and high school in which most teachers of academic subjects have doctorate degrees. To be hired there means you have impressed folks who are used to excellence.

In view of her service at these two pretigious institutions, it is not surprise that Nancy’s success as a coach in California mirrored her achievements as a player in Michigan. She was tennis’ Peninsula Athletic League Coach of the Year in 1995 and Private School Athletic League COY in 1996. In her spare time, she volunteered for the Stanford University Athletic Dept.

She also became the school’s department chair and eventually the athletic director. She was so well-thought-of that she was a presenter at the AAHPERD Convention in Atlanta on the subject of teaching tennis in physical education classes.

But Nancy’s service was not confined to tending to the privileged. She volunteered to help in a program sponsored by the Menlo Parks and Recreation Dept for students who were underserved. They not only struggled academically but could not afford tennis rackets or shoes. “In my long career, that was one of my most rewarding experiences,” she says. “I did that two times per week for four years, 10 months out of each year. It was wonderful.”

But our Hall of Fame is the Michigan High School Coaches Association H of F.

In 1998, she returned to Kalamazoo to help take care of her ailing mother. One can only imagine the astonishment of the Portage Northern athletic director who read her resume. She came back as a star tennis player at her alma mater who became a star tennis coach at two prestigious schools in California who, while there, also volunteered to help needy kids in her spare time. When she was hired to coach the Huskies, she came full circle.

She certainly hasn’t rested on previous laurels:

•        She has coached varsity boys teams in Portage for 12  years, girls for 14, and junior varsity squads for 16.

•        Her boys teams at Portage Northern and Portage Central have notched a combined five regional titles and four 2nd place finishes which has meant nine trips to the state finals. Their best finishes are invariably in the Top Ten and often in the Top Five.

•        Her girls teams at these two schools have won 275 dual meets, brought home nine regional trophies and     have been to the state championship tournament 15 times.

•        Both boys and girls have ended, at one time or an    other, in third place, a remarkable achievement. Only one time have they ever finished  worse than 10th in the state (that year it was 11th).

•        Her total dual meet record at both Portage schools is an astonishing 467-69. That’s 87 wins out of every 100 matches. Six of her kids were state champions. Eight of her players played college tennis. Two have gone on to coach high school tennis. One, Scott  Oudesma, turned pro and eventually was an assistant      coach at U of M.

High School tennis coaches and the MHSTeCA board have certainly noticed. She has been Regional Coach of the Year six times and received the state honor for boys in 2018.

Moreover, she continued to do extracurricular work. She helped with the Boys Nationals, volunteered to serve on the Midwest Section CTA Committee, and served on the Kalamazoo Tennis Patrons Board. Mirroring her work in Menlo Park, she taught in the Timothy Zeigler Community Tennis Program which served children ages 5-14 in the Greater Kalamazoo area.

In the midst of it all, she earned her PTR certification which qualified her to teach professionally at West Hills Tennis Club. She also completed her Certified Athletic Administration requirements. As a result, she is not only an elementary physical education teacher (she is the department chair) in the Portage schools but also the coordinator for the Portage schools tennis program. She wrote the curriculum in coordination with the USTA.

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Yes, the Portage-Kalamazoo area is “tennis rich.” It boasts an abundant tradition of excellence given the resources: Stowe Stadium, Two colleges with fine tennis histories, the teams of Herm Kieweit at Loy Norrix, state championships of Portage players, coaches such as Sandy Peterson, mentors such as George Acker – the list goes on.

But coaches of schools such as Cranbrook, Detroit Country Day, Brother Rice, East Grand Rapids, and many others know that it is certainly not a matter of tossing out balls and watching your kids win. These schools bring not only talented and trained players to their courts but also parents with high expectations who are not afraid to insert their opinions if the interests of their children are not, in their minds, well served. Too often, the kids follow their lead.

“Nancy is the most principled person with whom I've ever had the honor to coach beside,” says Portage Central’s Peter Militzer who is certainly in a position to know. “No player or parent gets away with any crap. She's interrupted tennis matches to march over to tell our parents and spectators not to applaud opponent's errors, even though our opponents' spectators are doing that. She addresses issues straight on and right away.”

Parents Dave and Joni Mills echo the assertion. “Although highly competitive and very skilled herself, Nancy personally never stoops, nor does she allow her players (or their parents) to stoop to the levels of teams who display poor sportsmanship,” they write. “One year, we had two very talented players who made some very poor choices, breaking our school’s Code of Conduct. Nancy, along with our other coaches, stood strong in enforcing the consequences of these players not being allowed to play in the regional, even though ultimately it may have damaged the team’s performance in the tournament.

 “All of our children played tennis at Portage Central,” says Robin Lentz. “On the court and at a match, stellar conduct was expected. At any tournament, our team was by far the most polite, respectful, and well behaved. It stood out. We would constantly hear whispers from other spectators asking ‘What team is that’? Even when other teams pushed the limits, Nancy taught our players to rise above and push harder.”

“While every coach will probably say that they want good sportsmanship from their players, few actually mandate it and deal with improper sportsmanship when it arises,” asserts Nancy.  “I can honestly say that I am the first to act and the firmest on the Portage Central players should there be an issue. Coaches in the SMAC can verify that.”

A Smattering of Additional Testimony

•        “As she educates her players, Nancy’s focus is obviously on teaching tennis  skills but even more importantly, she focuses on teaching life lessons that go far beyond the tennis court and  coaches and educate the heart of the student athlete. She understands that if you transform the heart, you will transform the person.”

•        “Be it win or lose, she is there for them on and off the court. She has shaped our son for the better.”

•        “The amount of time that she spends on the court is only a fraction of the time that she devotes to them.”

•        “She knows each of their stories and continually       checks in on them.”

 Indeed, Nancy reaches out to her players in more ways than just face-to-face advice. “Another thing that I do for my varsity team is to write each of them a letter mid-season highlighting their strengths and talking about what they should continue to work on” she says. “The area they should work on is never about their tennis skills. It is always abou their leadership and how to share the many talents and gifts they possess as people, not just tennis players. I always get positive feedback from the kids and their parents about this letter and how it changes their perspective on how the world views them as young, talented, and giving individuals. I also talk about the unique gifts they bring to their teammates.

“I really feel that this has had more of an impact than I had intended. I have been to graduation open house events where that letter has been on display. I feel that this is something that I give to my teams that is unique from other teams and coaches.”

How effective is she? “Nancy coached both of my children, Zack and Abby, whle they were students at Portage Central High School,” say Julie Carpenter. “Zach was captain of the varsity team during his senior year. Nancy helped guide him as a leader and taught him ways to channel his energy to engage the rest of the team which will be invaluable skills in his adult life. Abby was the only freshman on the varsity team but suffered significant injuries during her freshman and sophomore years. Nancy’s patience and mentoring helped Abby mature and grow through some challenging times and taught her ways to work through adversity that will serve her well in the future.”

“Coaching is my passion, my love and my life’s work,” she says. “The fact that I have seen so many of my players grow, develop and become  good people makes me know I have made a difference.”

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Although not an ordinary occurrence, sometimes an individual who was led in high school by a coach so extraordinary that they have been inducted into the MHSTeCA Hall of Fame has gone on to such a similar career which also derves this ultimate honor.

Since our Hall of Fame was established in 1986, no fewer than 19 have joined their erstwhile coaches in the display which resides at the Genesys Athletic Club in Grand Blanc. Last year, Jim Jonas joined his recently deceased coach Harold Holcomb who was inducted in 1992. In this present class of 2025, Nancy Martin’s photo will be on display along with Sandy Peterson who joined the second group in 1987.

But Annie Michol represents a first. She will join her brother, Mark Sobieralski, who was inducted in 2004.

Should we accuse the MHSTeCA Hall of Fame Selection Committee of nepotism? After all, Mark, as a former president, is on the committee and has a vote. Does she deserve to be in this group?

Consider the words of Mike Jolly, Annie’s former athletic director. “She is the worthiest Hall of Fame candidate that I have ever been asked to endorse,” he writes. “My career in coaching and education spans 60 years and I have sat and continue to sit on selection committees for the MHSCA, MHSLCA, and MCADA. As an athletic director and colleague, I have nominated and celebrated countless coaches for H of F honors. I repeat: for those literally hundreds of honorees, Annie is the most worthy.”

This begs the question: What has she done to earn such praise? 

Part of the answer is that she knows the sport inside and out as a player.

•        She qualified for state competition all four years of her high school experience: 4S in her freshman year at Warren Fitzgerald and 1S the next three seasons.

•        She was undefeated all four years in league play and held the record for most wins at Fitzgerald.

•        She went on to star at Macomb Community College for two years and finished her playing career at Wayne State at both 1S and 1D.

But even though the best players don’t always make the best coaches, Annie received the advantage of helping out her brother as an assistant at Grosse Pointe South. “This is where I realized I had a passion for coaching and being able to share the love of the game with high school players,” she says.

Moreover, she doesn’t just limit herself to service at just one school (just as her brother has been chosen Coach of the Year at no fewer than three schools: Warren Mott, Grosse Pte. South, and Grosse Pte. University Liggett). She has led teams in girls at Utica High School for 8 seasons, the boys at Utica for 7, and with boys at  De La Salle Collegiate for 16. That’s 31 campaigns, 32 when you count the one year she filled in at Regiina at the last minute to help out.

This begs the question: Why has she done to earn such praise?  Part of the answer is that she knows the sport inside and out as a player.

•   She qualified for state competition all four years of her high school experience: 4S in her freshman year at Warren Fitzgerald and 1S the next three seasons.

•   She was undefeated all four years in league play and held the record for most wins at Fitzgerald.

•   She went on to star at Mccomb Community College for two years and finished her playing career at Wayne State at both 1S and 1D.

But even though the best players don’t always make the best coaches, Annie received the advantage of helping out her brother as an assistant at Grosse Pointe South. “This is where I realized I had for coaching and being able to share the love of the game with high school players,” she says.

Moreover, she doesn’t just limit herself to service at just one school (just as her brother has been chosen Coach of the Year at no fewer than three schools: Warren Mott, Grosse Pte. South, and Grosse Pte. University Liggett). She has led teams in girls at Utica High School for ??? seasons and with boys at De La Salle Collegiate for ???

In other words, if you are good, you are good everywhere, not just at an institution where you might have had the luxury of inheriting good players from previous years and/or from local tennis clubs. Add the fact the De La Salle is an all-boys school coached by a female, albeit a female who clearly knows her stuff.

Annie was the first female coach hired at all boys De La Salle Collegiate,” says Mike. “Some of us wondered (in our naivete) how her players would respond to a lady as their leader. From Day No. 1, there has been no doubt that Coach Michol not only knew the sport but also knew how to teach and lead adolescent athletes. She has done this for both boys and girls teams at single-sex and co-ed for well-over three decades.”

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“You are a student athlete, not an athlete student,” Annie once said to Elizabeth Moss who played 1S for her at Utica High School. Indeed, this lady can teach and lead both on and off the tennis court.

“One of the challenges of being a coach is helping players succeed both on and off the court,” says Elizabeth. “High school athletics are balancing both athletics and academics. Coach Michol not only understands the importance of balance but puts emphasis on it.”

Indeed, tennis coaches are increasingly asked to be mentors, guidance counselors, and psychologists. Annie has fulfilled these impossibilities for many years. Yes, she stays after practice to hit with some players but she also helps them with their schoolwork.

“As a highly respected English teacher, she has helped not only myself but other students as well,” says Elizabeth. She would always offer to review our essays with us and help us in anyway she could. Having a coach who was not only willing to help with our tennis but also understood academics made a huge difference.

“She is a committed coach to all of her players even after they graduate,” continues Elizabeth. “Both her coaching and who she is as a person has continued to play a role in my life. Every time I play, I find myself thinking, ‘What would Coach Michol tell me to do?’  I find myself comparing every coach to her.”

High School tennis coaches are all too aware, especially if they are classroom teachers, of the tax on their time this sport is. “She is the busiest person I know and yet the quality of her work is outstanding,” says Mike. See sidebar.

Honors are not only a direct testament to the effectiveness of a coach but also a significant indication of how Annie’s view her performance.

•        In terms of her coaching at two different schools,  she has been League Coach of the Year five times

•        In terms of coaching at two different schools, she has been Regional Coach of the Year 12 times.

•        She has been Macomb County Coach of the Year four times.

•        She has been Catholic League Coach of the Year    six times

•        She has been MAC Coach of the Year five times

•        She has been MHSTeCA State Coach of the Year three times, once for work at Utica High School                  and twice at De La Salle.

•        In 2023, she represented tennis at the MHSCA banquet as the overall Coach of the Year in all                divisions.

•        She has been inducted into two Halls of Fame: the Michigan High Coaches Association H of F and                    the Macomb County Athletic H of F.

How busy is Annie off the court? A Partial List of Activies, Reponsibilites, and Honors.

•    She has been LaSallian Teacher of the Year.

•    She has been Bishop Quinn Archdiocese Teacher of the Year

•    She has been in charge of many service projects in the community such as work with the National           Multiple Sclerosis Foundation, the Fraser Villa Senior Community Living Center, and St. Hyacinth Catholic Church.

•        She has been involved in tutoring programs

•        She helps with Honors Banquets and Graduation

•        She is the Student Council Moderator

•        She has been on several interviewing committees at De La Salle

•        She is a Curriculum Administrator

•        She is the Eucharistic Minister at De La Salle

•        She was a Catechism Teacher at St. Lawrence up until 2024.

•        She was treasurer of the Macomb County Tennis     Coaches Association

But make no mistake about it, you don’t get into our Hall of Fame by helping kids with their homework .

Annie coached at De La Salle for almost 16 years but she paused in 2016 to spend time with all three of her daughters who played multiple sports. As can be expected, they are superb athletes who excelled in softball, basketball, swimming and tennis. The pool part is undoubtedly due to Annie’s husband who is a swim coach. Annie’s induction is unique.

She has been State Coach of the Year three times, leading two different schools. Her brother Mark also has been State Coach of the Year three times representing two different schools and coaching at a third.

And now:

Mark, Class of 2005
Annmarie, Class of 2025

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Not every tennis coach who gets inducted into the Hall of Fame achieves great success, in part, because they inherited the advantage of such great facilities that local kids were already encouraged to play the game. In fact, often enough it is just the opposite.

Consider Scott Symons. His kids at Nouvel Catholic notched three Top Ten finishes in the 15 years that he coached despite not having any home courts. In fact, in 2005 they played their matches at five different venues, none of them “theirs.”

Consider Ian Frost. He led his 10-person teams on five cement courts with wire nets that couldn’t be adjusted. Mark Sobieralski inherited this facility and had to put up with it for his first couple of years at Warren Mott.

Consider Jim Jonas who left a successful program at Bay City Western to teach in Fowlerville where there were no courts, therefore no opportunity for kids to learn to play.  He promised the superintendent that he would start tennis at the high school if an upcoming millage included funds for courts.

What else do these individuals have in common? They are all in the Hall of Fame. And to be sure, there are many, many more examples.

Enter Oscar Rodriguez. Although he took over the Lapeer program from vaunted and much respected Hall of Famer Rod McEachern, the condition of the courts was a major problem. “We managed to play with large patched up cracks and dealt with the balls which rolled out of play and under the fence,” he says. “In 2000, the courts were condemned and we had to decide whether or not to continue with the tennis program. We decided to move the program to Cramton Park and we would play all our matches on the road. The only home matches we had were the Lapeer East/West contests. For them, we used three courts at Rowden Park and the three courts at Cramton Park.

“Our 2007 boys team (which would play both in the spring and in the fall due to the Gender Equity Lawsuit result) coined the expression ‘No Courts, No Excuses as their own,’” he continues. “They missed qualifying for state finals in the spring by one point but came back in the fall to qualify. The seniors on that team never played a home match except for Lapeer East vs. Lapeer West.”

Fortunately, the Lapeer Optimist Club and the tennis parents combined to establish the Lapeer Optimist Tennis Facility at Lapeer West in 2009-2010. This enabled Oscar to not only hold home matches but also host up to five quads; bring Gilbert Rincon, the local pro, in for an annual clinic; and hold a county-wide event for children and adults at the end of the summers.

Tennis coaches know that most kids both take up the game and improve in the summers. Early on, Oscar stepped into this opportunity by becoming the tennis director and instructor for the Lapeer Recreation Center in 1996. This allowed kids to learn the game and improve their skills by joining the four-to-five-week summer program.

He still offers opportunities for all ages and abilities in addition to organizing leagues for adults. 80 to 100 participants means that there is considerable interest in his high school teams which often includes adult support derived from this event. As a result, his boys teams now average 20-24 players, enough to field a JV squad. The girls, which started with less than a full varsity contingent in 1988, are currently at 32-36.

In addition, Oscar runs singles and doubles leagues. “These activities give his current players opportunities to compete against older stronger opponents such as former players, parents, and even sometimes area high school coaches (like me), says Hall of Famer Doug Adams. “These well organized activities, along with the seven or more high school tournaments he hosts during seasons, provide supplemental funding for his teams.”

The result? Greg Tunnicliff (MHSTeCA Distinguished Service Award, 1999) has for decades been keeping meticulous and exhaustive records in his Greater Flint Area High School Tennis Record Book. Not surprisingly Oscar’s name can be found throughout this 241 page document.

Page 118 reveals that he places 10th in the all-time winningest coaches list. He is found behind only Hall of Famers Rod McEachern, Bill McDaniel and Doug Adams but ahead of Don Leavy, Gus Theodore, Art Vince, Mark Madden, and Jim Fowler. Yes, one reason why this is true is that he has been coaching for so long (girls, 35; boys 30) but  it isn’t as if he has been directing regional powerhouses such as Grand Blanc or Holly. 

“One of the biggest things that sticks out to me about Oscar is that he has dedicated his entire career to one area,” says Greg who is sports editor of the Flint Journal. “In an era where coaches seem to move around a lot, he has always been in the same place, always trying to make his respective area better. He is a true grass-roots coach.”

Given the impact on so many kids and adults, these efforts haven’t gone unnoticed. Oscar was named Flint area Coach of the Year in 2007, Metro League Coach of the Year in 2013, and MHSTeCA Regional Coach of the Year, also in 2013. His boys qualified for state competition in 2007 and were Saginaw Valley Conference Champions, South Division in 2014. Six of his kids have gone on to play at the college level and two have come back to coach high school players at their alma maters.

Moreover, the community certainly didn’t take Oscar for granted either. In 2022, they affectionally named the pavilion at the courts the O Zone. Former 1S and captain Lauren Aragones designed a logo which appears on sweatshirts, T-shirts, and hats. It shows the telltale O-Rod hair surrounding the “O”. A hitting wall will be completed next year.

Tennis is a unique sport that not only provides lifelong benefits but also breeds leaders. As with so many of his peers, Oscar has had the pleasure of leading kids who have themselves lead by example both in practice and in competition. They also tend to be very good students.

For instance, this year’s Miss Tennis from Forest Hills Central will double major in political science and environmental studies on a pre-law track rather than play college tennis. One example from Lapeer High School: Lauren Aragones plans to study biochemistry at the University of Michigan.

As a result, Oscar hosts a Girls Tennis Senior Night in which in writing he summarizes each individual in terms of contributions, leadership, and example. He writes about where and what they will study next year, how they helped at his summer camps, and their most memorable tennis moments.

Not the usual beginning

Unlike so many high school tennis coaches who played for their alma maters and loved it so much that they wanted to give back by coaching, Oscar didn’t take up the game until much later. “I grew up on the east side of Flint and attended Flint Central High School,” he says. “I was always working and wasn’t able to participate in high school sports because I wanted a car and other necessities that I thought were more important as a teenager.”

Nevertheless, he played some in high school and with Renee, his future wife “every chance we could get but it wasn’t easy finding a court.  I also spent a lot of time hitting off a wall when I couldn’t find someone to play with and would eventually play one year with UM-Flint’s Tennis Club.”

He was then encouraged to get his three children playing the game. “I had them taking a few group lessons at Genesee Valley and a couple of lessons with Gilbert Rincon (the highly respected local pro) while they were in high school.   My wife and I also took a few lessons with Nick Logan.  Only then did I see what other kids were doing to compete at a higher level.”

But Oscar didn’t get into coaching by teaching kids how to hit tennis balls. Instead he took over a fairly new volleyball program at E.T. White Junior High that consisted of 10 players. Under his leadership, it expanded to over 30 kids and although the school hired another coach, he continued to help with the 7th graders for ….. 33 years.

In the fall of 1988, the girls varsity tennis position opened up when Rod retired. “It was my first opportunity to coach at the high school level and it was going to be a major challenge,” he says. “We only had 8 girls and we would have to forfeit at 3 doubles throughout the season. My major goal was to make it a positive and rewarding experience for everyone in the program.”

To be sure, he was a fledgling. “During my first year as a tennis coach I had to learn how to feed balls and learn all the rules and regulations of high school sports.  I didn’t know how to feed very well, but they soon realized they would just have to adjust, as they would during a tennis match.”

Adjust they did. “We managed to finish the season with a winning record and the following year we increased our team membership to sixteen and continued to grow into the mid thirties and eventually adding a JV coach in 2014.

“In the spring of 1994 I was given the opportunity to coach the boys varsity tennis team at Lapeer East.  My hope was to use the seventh grade volleyball team and the Lapeer Recreation Summer Tennis Program to recruit girls and boys for our tennis programs.  The girls teams were thriving but the boys tennis program would run into a snag or two, as many schools would experience, such as, when the boys season was switched from fall to spring throughout the state.  Our numbers averaged 14-16 and it became more difficult to compete with football and soccer for new tennis players.  The switch in seasons definitely had a major impact on boys tennis.

Nevertheless, these kids rewarded their school and their coach. Oscar’s 2007 fall boys team at Lapeer East qualified for the Division 2 state finals by taking runner-up honors at a regional tournament. He had one No. 1 singles player, Roly Roldan, qualify in Class A in 1997. As a result, Oscar was named Flint-Area Boys Coach of the Year in the fall 2007 season, Metro League Boys Coach of the Year in 2013 and Division 2 boys Regional Coach of the Year, also in that year. When Lapeer East and West merged into Lapeer High School in 2014, he led the combined talents to a Saginaw Valley League South Division title.

And (drum roll, please). he led the Lightning boys team to a 5-3 victory over Grand Blanc on Sept. 7, 2023 at the Lapeer West campus. It was the first time a boys team from Lapeer had defeated Grand Blanc, dating back to a 4-3 triumph by the Lapeer Panthers on May 30, 1974 at Grand Blanc.

“Coaching for him is much more than just a short season of playing a dozen or so dual matches for our relatively short seasons,” says Doug. “To help prepare for Regionals,

Oscar provided full day tournament experiences for his players.  He hosted multiple invitationals each season and traveled to other schools such as Clio High for our annual Mustang Invitational.  I observed firsthand how year after year the players on his teams showed great improvement from the beginning to the end of each season.  They were playing at their highest level at the end of their season when arriving at regional tournaments.”

Oscar started coaching the girls in Lapeer in 1988 which adds up to 35 years. He took over the boys job in 1994: 30 years. And he taught social studies -- AP U.S. Government, History, Criminology, Sports History --in Lapeer for 45 and a half years (this is not a misprint). “It’s one of the most important jobs in the world,” he says. “It is demanding but rewarding.” All in all, he presents an amazing body of work, one worthy of the highest praise.

Coach McEachern, meet Coach Rodriguez once again, but this time in Grand Blanc at the Hall of Fame display in the Genesys Athletic Club.

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