In response to a growing number of duties at The Racquet Club ofMemphis, long-time men's tennis coach Phil Chamberlain has steppeddown. Chamberlain, who spent six seasons guiding the Tigers, wasreplaced by his assistant coach of four years, Paul Goebel.
"Phil has done a great job building the program up," Goebelsaid. "We have a bunch of great guys and a great opportunity forthis to go to the next level. "This is a very good situation thatI'm happy to be a part of."
Chamberlain's departure coincided with his promotion totournament director of the Regions Morgan Keegan Championships,held at The Racquet Club of Memphis every February. The tournamentreplaces the Kroger-St. Jude Classic, but will be held during thesame week.
His promotion prompted Chamberlain to take a lesser role withthe Tigers. While he has relinquished his coaching duties,Chamberlain will maintain a presence with the Tigers, helping withfundraising and the Tigers' home tournaments. Chamberlain's movecame as only a slight surprise to Goebel, and he said he is readyto step into the position.
"It's not a big surprise for me ... Each year (Chamberlain) keptgiving me more and more responsibility, so I think I'm ready,"Goebel said.
Chamberlain and Goebel led the Tigers to national rankings inportions of three consecutive seasons. The Tigers' highest rankingwas No. 50 in 2003. In college tennis, the top 75 teams areranked.
In his college career, Goebel was a four-year player at MiddleTennessee State, including an All-American in his senior year of1994.
Goebel moved to Memphis in 1996 and served as a clubprofessional at The Racquet Club of Memphis, where his relationshipwith Chamberlain began. He began his affiliation with The U of M in2000. Goebel said he hopes to fill the vacant assistant positionsometime in 2005.
Goebel will make his coaching debut on September 17 at theMiddle Tennessee Classic in Murfeesboro, Tenn.
<i><center><b>Volleyball sweeps again,moves to 5-0.</i></center></b>
Senior Tiara Gilkey and Junior Fehi Tuivai combined for 24 killsas Tigers volleyball defeated Weber State 30-24, 30-26, 30-25 inProvo, Utah. The 3-0 victory gives Memphis five consecutive sweepsto start the season, a first in the program\'d5s history. HeatherWatts, named the conference\'d5s first ever Setter of the Week thisweek, had a game high 39 assists in the win.
<i><center><b>Women's soccer soars pastSkyhawks </i></center></b>
Two first-half goals propelled Memphis past Tennessee-Martin 2-1on Wednesday.
Goals by sophomores Beth Keating and Madison Cheek gave theTigers (3-1) a 2-0 halftime lead. Freshman Carla Scannielloassisted on both goals, tying her with Cheek for the team leads inpoints with eight.
Freshman goalie Natalie Haerens, the reigning Conference USADefensive Player of the Week, recorded five saves in the win. In2004, she has 25 saves and a .893 save percentage. Haerens hasallowed just three goals in four games, including two shutouts tostart her college career. Memphis has outscored opponents in thefirst half of games this year.
