Welcome Home! Constantine Ananiadis Named Head Men’s & Women’s Tennis Coach at Washington College

PROVEN WINNER RETURNS TO CHESTERTOWN WITH 19 YEARS OF HEAD COACHING EXPERIENCE

CHESTERTOWN, Md. – Associate Vice President & Director of Athletics Thad Moore has announced the hiring of Constantine Ananiadis as Washington College’s next head men’s and women’s tennis coach.

Ananiadis, who guided Washington College’s men’s and women’s tennis programs from 2003 to 2007, returns to the Eastern Shore with 23 years of collegiate coaching experience, including 19 years as a head coach.

“After meeting with Constantine, it was clear that our committee believed that he was the best choice to take both of our teams to the next level,” stated Moore. He has been a winner his entire career and we are excited to welcome him and his family back to Chestertown.”

“My family and I are so excited to be coming back “home” to Chestertown,” Ananiadis exclaimed. “We truly loved our time there 15 years ago and the timing for this move back couldn’t have been better. I look forward to building on the storied tennis tradition Washington has and become a part of the College and the community for a long time. I’d also like to thank Thad, Kim Lessard, and the rest of search committee for making this process as smooth as possible and getting me excited about being a part of the future of WC Athletics. I can’t wait to start!”

Ananiadis has spent the past 15 seasons as the head women’s tennis coach at Oberlin College, where he became the most successful coach in program history with 177 career wins. The native of Greece built the Yeowomen into a perennial force not only within the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) but also within the region and nation as well. During his tenure, he took the program from unranked to as high as 8th in the Central Region and 32nd in the nation. The 19 team wins earned by his 2012 squad tied the school record for most victories in a season and Ananiadis was named the NCAC and ITA Central Region Coach of the Year following that campaign.

Individually, he recruited and coaches two All-Americans (Ariel Lewis ’11 & ’12) and Brenna Sheldon (’14) as well as three national qualifiers (Ariel Lewis ’09, ’11, and ’12), Farah Leclercq ’13, and Brenna Sheldon ’14). Over 60 players and doubles pairs have received NCAC All-Conference honors, which included NCAC Player and Rookie of the Year awards. In 2018, Sarah Hughes was the recipient of the National Most Improved Senior award. The Yeowomen earned the ITA All-Academic Team award in each season he was at the helm.

While at Washington College, Ananiadis led the Shoremen to a pair of Centennial Conference Championships and the squad qualified for the NCAA team championship three times. His 2007 men’s team finished 19-4 and ranked 15th in the nation. He helped recruit and coach Arturo Solis to the NCAA Singles Semi-finals and All-American honors. On the other side, the Shorewomen went from unranked and bottom of the league to 2nd in the league and 8th in the region preceding his departure.

Prior to his first stint in Chestertown, Ananiadis was an assistant coach at the University of Virginia for two seasons from 2001 through 2003. He helped secure the top-ranked recruiting class in the country, which ultimately resulted in multiple national championships.

Ananiadis began his coaching career as the head coach at Agnes Scott College, where his teams broke numerous school records and his top player, Selinda Geyer, reached the NCAA Singles Final in 2000.

As a student-athlete at Division I Stetson University, Ananiadis broke the school record for winning percentage (.875) by going 21-3 in his senior campaign in 1996. That same year, the Hatters earned their first ever national ranking (56th) and compiled a 21-4 record. He is still active as a player on the USTA circuit at the 5.0 NTRP level and has been ranked in the Top 10 in the nation in the 40’s and 45’s categories in singles. In the summer of 2016, he earned a 3rd place finish in doubles at the national Grass Court 40’s tournament in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Ananiadis earned a Bachelor’s degree in Sports & Exercise Science at Stetson University in 1996 and a Masters (ABD) in Exercise Physiology from Auburn University. He also has numerous other tennis and strength & conditioning certifications from various organizations such as the USTA and PTR.

Ananiadis and his wife Marti, also a tennis stand-out while at Stetson, are the proud parents of three boys, Stavros (20), Vagelis (17), and Gene Michael (10).