Lisa Hart enters her ninth season as the Washington State head women's tennis coach, having accumulated a 78-93 record, including a trip to the NCAA Championships in 2008.

Throughout her tenure Hart's teams have achieved success on the court and in the classroom, posting four seasons with 12 or more victories with each of the last four seasons garnering the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-Academic team award. Additionally, she has coached three players, Eka Burduli, Elisabeth Fournier and Liudmila Vasilieva, who have reached the NCAA Singles Championships.

Last season WSU started strong, winning six of its first eight matches. Midway through the spring schedule WSU posted its biggest upset of the season, defeating No. 39 Arizona 6-1. It garnered the Cougars a No. 70 national ranking the following week, its only ranking of the year. WSU also achieved a first when it took the top two matches against eventual national champion Stanford, the only time that has happened in school history.

The Cougars' 2008-09 schedule was one of the toughest schedules in school history as WSU faced 16 nationally-ranked opponents en route to an 8-17 record. Eight of the opponents were Pac-10 foes, six of which were ranked among the top 30 nationally.

During the 2007-08 season Hart guided her squad to a 16-10 overall record, the most wins by a Cougar squad since posting 17 during the 1995-96 season. The winning record was the third straight season in which WSU finished above the .500 mark. WSU played 13 nationally-ranked opponents, while defeating five of them: No.56 BYU, No.68 Utah, No. 59 Boise State, No.46 Oregon, and No.34 Washington.

The 2006-07 Cougar team entered the year ranked No. 66 nationally. They started off the season with a five match winning streak which propelled the Cougars to a No. 56 ranking. Wins over No. 30 BYU and No. 47 Sacramento State helped them jump to a season high No. 41 ranking. The Cougars ended the season ranked No. 45 with a record of 14-11.

In 2005-06, Coach Hart led the Cougars to a season high ranking of No. 69. The season was highlighted by three victories over ranked opponents No. 73 Boise State, No. 75 Loyola Marymount and No. 61 South Alabama. Coach Hart led the Cougars to their first winning season since 2000-01 with a record of 14-12.

During the 2004-05 season, Hart led the Cougars to a season high ranking of No. 64, bolstered by upsets wins over nationally-ranked San Diego and Santa Clara. The season ended with a 9-14 record and included notable wins against Cal State Northridge, Montana, and Idaho. The Cougars took three nationally-ranked teams to the wire, losing 4-3 to No. 25 BYU, No. 44 Iowa and No. 73 Colorado.

Hart's first year at WSU, 2003-04, the Cougars were ranked No. 51 and captured three wins over ranked opponents. WSU's biggest victory came at No. 23 Oregon in mid-March. The Cougars also defeated Oklahoma State and San Diego State, both ranked in the top 50 nationally at the time.

During Hart's tenure with the Cougars she has been dedicated to community outreach. She was selected as the regional winner of the 2004, 2005 and 2007 Community Service Award by the United States Tennis Association and Intercollegiate Tennis Association. The award is to honor ITA coaches for their significant contributions in developing community based tennis programs through community centers, schools, parks, community tennis associations, inner city, suburban or rural programs. In December, 2008, Hart was named the national winner of the USTA/ITA Community Outreach Award and was honored by the ITA at its national coaches convention in Naples, Fla.

From an academic standing, Hart-coached players have accumulated 21 Pac-10 all-Academic honors, 15 ITA All-Academic awards and one ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA All-District VIII First Team recipient.

Currently, Hart is a member of the ITA Northwest Regional Committee and the ITA National Operating Committee for the Northwest Region.

Prior to WSU, Hart spent three seasons at Virginia Tech where she guided the Hokies to a 45-36 record in three seasons including third-place finishes each year in the Big East Conference.

During the 2002-03 season, Hart's Virginia Tech squad concluded the year ranked 69th nationally and eighth in the East region. The Hokies posted victories over No. 27 Oregon, No. 65 Marshall, No. 66 Middle Tennessee State, No. 67 Florida Atlantic and No. 72 Penn State. Hart was a member of the International Tennis Association (ITA) East Region committee from 2001-03 and chaired the committee in 2002-03. The East Region is the largest region in the United States with over 80 schools.

Prior to Virginia Tech, Hart served as the assistant women's tennis coach at the University of Nebraska for two years. While on the Nebraska staff, she helped the Cornhuskers compile a two year record of 36-13, including a 19-5 record in 2000.

Hart was a tennis standout at Nebraska, finishing her career as one of the most successful women's tennis players in school history. She recorded 74 career singles victories winning the Big 12 Conference No. 2 singles title as a senior.

Hart, the 1995 Big Eight Freshman of the Year, was the first women's tennis player at Nebraska to win a conference singles title since 1978 and only the sixth player in Cornhuskers' history. She was selected to the all-conference team twice and upon graduation her 74 wins ranked No. 3 on the school's career singles victory list.

Her dedication and excellence on the court was matched in the classroom as Hart was a three-time academic all-conference selection, earning first-team academic All-Big 12 honors as a senior. She was selected by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association as the Central Region's "Cissie Learie Sportsmanship Award" winner, one of six throughout the country. As a senior, Hart also received the Arthur Ashe Sportsmanship and Leadership Award.

A native of Sunnyside, Wash., Hart had an outstanding high school career at Sunnyside High where she was a three-time State champion. She also earned All-America honors as a high school sophomore. Hart earned a bachelor's degree in elementary education from Nebraska and also holds a master's degree in education with an emphasis in physical education and sports studies from Nebraska.

Hart and her husband John, an attorney, reside in Pullman with their daughter, Mary Beth and son, Paul.

Official Website of Washington State University Athletics | Bohler Athletic Complex | PO Box 641602 Pullman, WA 99164-1602 | 1.800.GO.COUGS