Angelo Anastopoulo announced his retirement on Apr. 28 after serving as head coach of the College of Charleston women’s tennis team for 35 years and as Director of Tennis for 24 years.
Anastopoulo became the longest tenured coach at the College in fall 2024, surpassing Ralph Lundy, who led men’s soccer for 33 seasons. His career includes an overall coaching record of 793-353 (.692), with a women’s team record of 621-274 (.694). He ranks eighth all-time among NCAA Division I women’s tennis head coaches in career victories and is among the top-40 in winning percentage.
“What I’ve learned over the course of my career is that it takes a village to run a successful program,” said Anastopoulo. “I want to thank the many people and staff who helped our players physically and academically, the individual who strung all of our rackets, the staff at Patriots Point, the groundskeepers, the generous donors, the wonderful alumni, all the tennis officials and the many talented assistant coaches who helped coach our teams.”
Director of Athletics Matt Roberts said: “The years of service Coach Anastopoulo has given not only to the College of Charleston, but the Charleston community and collegiate tennis as a whole is truly amazing. He has positively impacted the lives of so many young people through tennis. We will be forever grateful for the lasting legacy he will leave behind.” Senior Associate Director Jerry Baker added: “With over 600 wins, he is an icon of college tennis. He has been an unbelievable leader and touched so many lives”
Anastopoulo reached several milestones during his tenure including earning his 600th win on March 29, 2025 with a victory over UNCW—becoming just ninth in NCAA Division I women’s tennis history to do so—and passing John Kresse for most wins with one program at Charleston in March 2023.
He has received eight conference Coach of Year awards along with being named ITA Southeast Region Coach (2009) and making six NCAA Tournament appearances while winning seven conference titles. Academically, his teams have consistently earned high honors including ITA All-Academic Team recognition and six consecutive NCAA Public Recognition Awards for Academic Progress Rate.
In addition to coaching achievements, Anastopoulo served as adjunct faculty member teaching beginner’s tennis classes at CofC for more than three decades.
Reflecting on relationships built during his time at Charleston he said: “My two biggest confidantes and friends at The College have been Volunteer Coach Billy Silcox and Men’s Coach Jay Bruner… Without [Silcox’s] guidance and mentorship I would never have succeeded… I’ve been working with Coach Jay [Bruner] for twenty years – he has been a first class loyal friend… CofC is very blessed to have him.” He also thanked parents: “I hope this program taught them life lessons… Winning is awesome but academics and contributing back to community is even better.” To former players he said: “It’s been more than wins or losses or championships—it’s seeing these student athletes as my children… These young men & women are my family & they have truly sustained me over my career.”
A national search will begin immediately to find his successor.
