The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Department of Intercollegiate Athletics hired West Nott as the new head coach on Aug. 8, 2019. Nott brings a wide range of experience, covering the full spectrum of player development from beginners, national junior champions, NCAA champions, ITF Pro Circuit champions, all the way up to professional Grand Slam tournaments.
Nott has led the Vaqueros on an upward trajectory from going 1-11 in his first year to 11-10 in his third. UTRGV clinched the No. 4 seed for the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Championships in 2022 after a season that saw breakthrough wins over Abilene Christian, Sam Houston, Lamar and NJIT.
Off the court, Nott’s impact has helped the women’s tennis team win the UTRGV Academic Team of the Year award in 2020 and finish with the highest spring GPA in 2022. Also in 2022, the Vaqueros ranked No. 2 among women’s NCAA Division I tennis programs for community service, were the ITA Texas Regional Community Service Award winners and the UTRGV Community Engagement Team of the Year.
Nott spent 10 seasons at USC helping the Trojans reach No. 1 nationally, No. 1 seed at the NCAA Championships, two NCAA Final Fours, four PAC-12 Team Championships, and six national individual collegiate champions, including the 2013 NCAA Doubles Champions. Nott has produced a champion for each of the 4 national individual championships in college tennis consisting of the All-American Championships, Oracle ITA Masters, Fall National Championships (formerly the National Indoor Championships), and the NCAA Championships.
From the players he recruited and developed at USC, five have gone on to compete at Wimbledon, US Open, French Open, and the Australian Open, scoring notable wins in doubles against Sofia Kenin (2020 Australian Open Champion), Sloane Stephens (2017 US Open Champion), Garbine Muguruza (No. 1 WTA), Monica Puig (2016 Olympic Gold Medalist), Victoria Azarenka (No. 1 WTA), Jelena Ostapenko (2017 French Open Champion), Svetlana Kuznetsova (WTA No. 2 singles), Coco Gauff (2022 French Open Finalist), Kristina Mladenovic (WTA No. 1 doubles), Timea Babos (WTA No. 1 doubles), Katarina Srebotnik (WTA No. 1 doubles), Sania Mirza (WTA No.1 doubles), and Su-Wei Hsieh (WTA No. 1 doubles).
Current Notable Players on WTA Pro Tour (recruited and developed in college):
Danielle Lao - Career High #152 WTA Singles. Won 3 rounds of qualifying to reach main draw of 2017 US Open, 2018 US Open, and 2021 Wimbledon.
Giuliana Olmos – Career High #11 WTA Doubles. 2021 US Open Mixed Doubles Finalist, 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games, 2021 French Open Mixed Doubles SF, 2021 Australian Open QF, 2021 Italian Open Champion, 2022 BNP Paribas Indian Wells SF, 2022 Madrid Open Champion, 2022 Italian Open Finalist. Fed Cup Player and Captain for Mexico.
Sabrina Santamaria – Career High #53 WTA Doubles. 1 WTA Title (2022), 2021 BNP Paribas Indian Wells QF, 2018 Cincinnati SF. Reach 2nd round of Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open.
Kaitlyn Christian – Career High #38 WTA Doubles. 1 WTA Title (2022). Reached 3rd round of Australian Open, 2ndround of French Open and Wimbledon, and 1st round of US Open.
Angela Kulikov - #123 WTA Doubles
Career Coaching Highlights
University of Southern California (USC)
Associate Head Women’s Tennis Coach (2007-2017)
- 4 PAC-12 Team Championships (2009, 2012, 2013, 2015)
- 2 Final Four NCAA Team Championships (2012, 2015)
- 1 NCAA Doubles Championships (2013 Santamaria/Christian)
- 6 National Individual Champions (1 singles, 5 doubles)
- 4 Trojans reached #1 national singles ranking (Nelson, Fink, Sanchez, Santamaria)
- ITA National Player of the Year (2011 Maria Sanchez)
- #1 seed 2015 NCAA Team Championships (first time since 1985)
- 2015 USC reached #1 NCAA team ranking (first time since 2003)
- 2015 USC recorded most overall wins (25) since 1985
- 3 undefeated seasons in PAC-12 (2009, 2013, 2015)
- 4 top 10 national team finishes (2009 - #9, 2012 - #4, 2013 - #6, 2015 - #2)
- 3 recruiting classes in the top 5 nationally (2011- #2, 2014 - #2, 2015 - #4)
- 78% PAC-12 dual-match record (65-18)
- 75% overall dual-match record (176-60)
- Recruited players Angela Kulikov and Rianna Valdes (2019 - #1 seed NCAA Doubles Championships)
United State Tennis Association (USTA) Player Development
National Collegiate Team Women’s Coach (2013-2014)
- Coached 2-time NCAA Champion Nicole Gibbs at the 2013 US Open, WTA Cincinnati, WTA Carlsbad
- Guided a 10+ member team consisting of the top US collegiate players transitioning to the professional tour including notable players Jennifer Brady, Jamie Loeb, Robin Anderson, and Hayley Carter
World University Games
Kazan, Russia
Team USA Women’s Tennis Head Coach (2013)
- Bronze medal finish in team competition
- Silver medal finish in singles competition (Sabrina Santamaria)
University of Washington
Volunteer Assistant Men’s Tennis (2006)
- Sweet 16 NCAA Team Championships
- Defeated USC and UCLA in PAC-12 regular season
Most recently, Nott was the Director of Junior Tennis at Bobby Riggs Racket and Paddle in Encinitas, California. Nott oversaw over 100 tennis members and designed programming to cover all levels of play. He played an integral role in recruiting the top junior tennis players in Southern California, providing A to Z training for the players.
In the summer of 2017, Nott competed against some of the top college players in prize money events, securing doubles wins over Alex Lebedev (No. 1 Notre Dame) and Spencer Furman (No. 1 Duke).
During his coaching career, Nott continued to compete in Davis Cup competition as a member of the Pacific Oceania team, having beaten the No. 1 and No. 2 players from Iran during the summer's 2011 Davis Cup and also competing in matches versus China, New Zealand, South Korea, Malaysia and Pakistan as a member of the Pacific Oceania team. He also claimed victory in the deciding singles match against Pakistan at the 2006 Davis Cup.
In college, Nott played one year at Florida before transferring to Georgia Tech where he helped lead the team to the finals of the ACC Team Championships. In three seasons, Nott rose to No. 5 on the all-time career singles wins list and reached No. 2 all-time in single-season doubles wins. In his junior career, Nott was consistently ranked in the nation's top-10 for his age group. He was consistently ranked No. 1 in the Midwest Section and won the US National Indoor Junior Championships in 1998. Teaming with his mother, Elizabeth, Nott won the 2006 National Mother-Son Doubles Championships in 2006 and reached the final in 2010.
Nott also spent six months in 2006 as the full-time coach for #1 national junior Canadian Rebecca Marino, who reached a career high No. 38 WTA ranking.
Although born in the Marshall Islands, Nott spent his childhood hitting against the wall on an island in Micronesia called Pohnpei until the age of 11. His family includes his wife Kanak Bulbul and son Theodore.
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING ABOUT WEST NOTT
Lele Forood, Stanford University Women's Tennis Head Coach
I think UTRGV got themselves a steal with West Nott taking over the women's tennis head coaching position. He is experienced, talented and used to winning. He will do great things for the program. The student-athletes will really like playing for him.
Howard Joffe, University of Texas Women's Tennis Head Coach
UTRGV appears to have a Midas-like knack of attracting exceptional talent to their women's tennis program. With the hire of West Nott, they have once again succeeded! West is a brilliant coach and an exceedingly likeable person who will continue to attract good talent and develop them on and off the court. The student-athletes with whom he is now charged just had a big win!
Sheila McInerney, Arizona State University Women's Tennis Head Coach
I think West is a great hire for the UTRGVwomen's tennis program. West loves tennis and his passion for the game and knowledge of the game will be invaluable as he builds on and elevates the program at UTRGV. West has coached at the highest level of collegiate tennis and he will gain the confidence and trust of his players very quickly. I see nothing but success for UTRGV women's tennis under West's leadership.
Julia Sell, LSU Women's Tennis Head Coach
West is a high-caliber person and coach. His ability to connect with his players combined with his incredible tennis knowledge and skill set make him a world-class hire!
