Avi Kigel returns to Barry as the women's head coach bringing eight years experience in assistant coaching positions. Kigel, who once served as an assistant coach for the Bucs, is taking over for Dr. George Samuel who served as head coach for the Bucs men's and women's programs for the last 17 years. Samuel reamains as head coach for the men's tennis team. As head coach, Kigel leads all aspects of the women's program, including recruiting and on-court coaching in practice and matches.

Kigel comes to Barry after four years as an assistant coach at Davidson College in Davidson NC. While at Davidson, Kigel helped lead the Wildcats to a 73-32 mark, including a 33-7 mark in the Southern Conference. With the help of Kigel, the Wildcats reached the Southern Conference tournament finals in 2005, 2006, and 2008.

Prior to Davidson, Kigel spent four seasons with the Bucs as an assistant coach for the men's and women's programs. His tenure denoted the high-water mark for the program, with a 90-22 record and national semi-final appearances in three of the four years. The Bucs set records in 2003 for wins in a season (27) and in 2005 for winning percentage (23-3, .884). In 2002, the Bucs won the Sunshine State Conference title and finished third at the NCAA Division II National Tournament. In 2003, they reached the national finals for the only time in program history.

Kigel was ranked 15th as a singles player in NCAA Division II, playing for the Spartans of Norfolk State University. As a freshman, Kigel was named Freshman of the Year in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA). He helped NSU win the conference titles in 1995 and 1996 and was named MVP both years. After his sophomore year, NSU moved to NCAA Division I and joined the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). During their first two years of MEAC competition, Kigel helped lead the Spartans to the semifinals of the conference tournament. As a junior, Kigel amassed a 41-10 record, largely over Division I opponents.

Kigel added to his collegiate success playing in United States Tennis Association (USTA) tournaments after graduation. In 2003 Kigel won the USTA Florida Section Men's 30 Singles Tournament Championship defeating his opponent 6-1, 6-3.

Kigel has been a member of the USTA since 2002. In addition to his USTA affiliation, Kigel has been a member of the United States Professional Tennis Registry (USPTR) since 2006.
Originally from Tel Aviv, Israel, he grew up playing tennis from the age of four. Kigel was ranked as high as sixth in Israel as a junior (Under-18s) and was a member of the Junior National Team.

Kigel received a bachelor of science degree in 1999 from NSU in Health and Fitness and a master's degree in exercise science from Barry in 2004.

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