MIAMI SHORES, Fla.—Former Buccaneer and Davidson assistant coach Avi Kigel has been hired to take over the Barry University women’s tennis program, director of athletics Michael L. Covone announced on Thursday.
Kigel takes over from Dr. George Samuel who led both the men’s and women’s programs for the last 17 years. Samuel will remain as the men’s coach.
Kigel spent the last four years as the assistant women’s coach at Davidson, helping lead the Wildcats to a 73-32 mark, including 33-7 mark in the Southern Conference.
Prior to Davidson, Kigel spent four seasons with the Bucs. His tenure marked 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.
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 of science in movement science from Barry in 2004.
