MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (April 24, 2020) - St. Thomas University (STU) Athletics welcomes Chief Compliance Officer and Title IX Coordinator, Matt Roche, as the Head Coach of the Men's & Women's Tennis program, announces Director of Athletics, Laura Courtley-Todd.
Courtley-Todd stated, "It is great to have Matt [Roche] on board and joining our STU Athletics family. As a former collegiate player and educator, I am confident that he will lead Bobcat Tennis with integrity and pride."
Roche makes his return to South Florida, following a two-year stint as the Head Coach at Norwich University (Vt.), as he launched the club tennis program at Lynn University. Roche brings over a decade of experience in coaching tennis, including an assistant coaching tenure at Thomas More University (Ky.).
"I am excited to make the transition from [NCAA] Division III to NAIA, at St. Thomas University. I'm grateful for the opportunity and look forward to building upon the legacy of Coach [Bruce] Carrington," Roche added, "I'm looking forward to building a program that consists of high character individuals that play with integrity and grit. As a team, we will focus on academics while increasing our competitiveness within the Sun Conference."
Roche graduated from Notre Dame College (OH.) in 2013 with degrees in political science and history. While at NDC, Roche played on the tennis team as the No. 1 singles player and earned the 18th overall ranking in Ohio during his career. After completing his degrees at Notre Dame, Roche earned his Juris Doctor from the Vermont Law School. In order to complete his law degree, Roche interned at Thomas More, under St. Thomas University President, David A. Armstrong, J.D.
President Armstrong is happy to be working with Roche, saying, "We are fortunate to have Matt Roche join St. Thomas University as our Chief Compliance Officer/ Title IX Coordinator and Tennis Coach. Matt is a former dual-sport collegiate athlete, bringing experience as an assistant and head coach. I believe he will elevate STU Tennis to a higher level and we're excited to see what Matt will bring to our tennis programs."
Roche takes over the Tennis programs after 20-years under the instruction of Bruce Carrington. Carrington made an impact in the South Florida community through the sport of tennis and was recognized with "Bruce Carrington Day" in 2018. Carrington was named the Sun Conference Coach of Character in three consecutive seasons, as he used his platform of a collegiate tennis coach to assist underprivileged youth in South Florida.
President Armstrong added, "We appreciate everything Coach Carrington has done for STU Tennis and, more importantly, his efforts to creating career opportunities for minorities in tennis. He is a true legend of the sport."
During his coaching career, Roche served as an assistant coach at Thomas More for one season before transitioning to Lynn University and launching their club tennis program. Roche was named the head coach at Norwich University in 2018 and helped revamp the Cadet Tennis Program.
"While I was the Head Coach at Norwich, we re-established the tennis program by increasing the schedule, adding spring break trips and added a strength & conditioning program," added Roche.
In the transition to head coach at St. Thomas University, Roche hopes to have the same success, stating, "we want to engrain our team into the South Florida community and expand the brand of STU Tennis. We're going to add to our schedule, create a comprehensive tennis experience for our student-athletes and become the destination school for South Florida students."
About St. Thomas University:
St. Thomas is a Catholic University with rich cultural and international diversity committed to the academic and professional success of its students who become ethical leaders in our global community. The only Catholic Archdiocesan-sponsored University in Florida, STU is a private, non-profit university that offers more than 45 undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate degrees at its 144-acre campus in Miami Gardens, Fla., and through distance learning, including one of the oldest (and highly ranked) undergraduate programs in Sports Administration in the country. STU has been ranked #1 by U.S. News World and Report in social mobility for regional universities in the South, which means it takes students from the lowest financial strata and catapults them to a much higher financial strata in only 10 years. In the last year, STU also recruited the largest incoming undergraduate class and raised the most money in the university's history.
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