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Contact Coach Severance John Severance embarks on his fourth season as the University of Houston tennis head coach and his seventh season with the program after spending three seasons as an assistant coach. Houston went 13-9 last year as Severance marked a milestone of 50 wins in just his first three seasons, the fastest of any Cougars' women's tennis coach. The Cougars have turned in an overall 50-24 (.676) record under Severance and have produced five All-Conferene honorees and the 2007 C-USA Newcomer of the Year. Since his arrival at Houston, the Cougars have climbed from a seventh-place finish in his first year as an assistant coach, and have finished in the Top 4 of C-USA in each of the last four seasons. Houston's success on the courts brought the program its highest ITA national ranking since 2001 as the Cougars were ranked as high as No. 67 in 2006. Prior to Severance's arrival, the Cougars had not finished with a winning record since 1998. Houston has steadily increased their number of wins each season under Severance and finished above the .500 mark the last four seasons, including a .800 winning percentage in 2006, the second highest in the program's 29-year history. Over that time, Severance has helped coach eight All-Conference players, including 2002 C-USA Player of the Year, 2006 Wimbledon Second Rounder Sarah Borwell, two-time C-USA pick Kami Miller and 2007 C-USA Newcomer of the Year Leila Salek. The transition into coaching at the collegiate level has been an easy one for Severance, who is a natural with teaching mechanics, strategy and point development. Born in Salt Lake City, Utah, and raised in Phoenix, Ariz., Severance joined the program in 2001 after working at the Tucson Racquet and Fitness Club in Tucson, Ariz. He is a certified member of the United States Professional Tennis Association and has been given the elite rating of Professional I. Prior to his appointment at Houston, Severance worked with the juniors in the excellence program at the Tucson Racquet and Fitness Club and in his spare time helped coach the Saint Gregory College Prep boys' and girls' tennis teams. In 2001, he helped the boys' team to a regional title and assisted the girls' team in winning the state championship. Severance credits his coaching success to his idea of focusing on high percentage tennis (HPT). He attributes confidence being built and strengthened by playing better HPT. This season Severance wants to take HPT a step further with aggression and discipline to equal New Age Tennis. "Being a former student-athlete, I'm trying to give my players the knowledge that I have gained since playing," Severance said. "Looking at tennis from a coach's perspective, you realize how important it is to work hard off the court in addition to putting in quality work when you are on the court. It doesn't just take a good player to win. It takes an all-around athlete. "You can see it in the world's best players," Severance continued. "They are not at the top of their games because they change the way they play. They are the greatest because they have increased their strength and conditioning in addition to their tennis talent."" As a player, Severance enjoyed a successful career at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs. He was one of the top players in the lineup during the 1997-98 season for the Lions. Preceding his play at CU-Colorado Springs, Severance played at Mesa Community College (1995-97). That same year he also helped his team to a No. 10 national ranking at the national tournament in Corpus Christi, Texas. In 1999, he finished his studies at the University of Arizona and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in sociology. Severance began playing tennis after watching The French Open in 1983. That afternoon he grabbed his father's wooden racket and several old balls, walked across the street to the tennis court, and went on to teach himself how to play. He knows what it took to get himself where he is and has high hopes for his players. |
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