Martin Stiegwardt Season 2024-25
Martin Stiegwardt, 2012-13 ITA Regional Assistant Coach of the Year, has been named the assistant coach of the LSU men’s tennis team, head coach Jeff Brown announced Thursday.
Stiegwardt comes to LSU after spending three years at Auburn, which was preceded by two years as the assistant coach for both the men’s and women’s programs at Virginia Commonwealth University. Stiegwardt will take the place of Danny Bryan, who was hired as the head coach of Wichita State last month.
“Martin is well respected as a coach, and he is one of the best recruiters in the business,” Brown said. “The team will benefit from his experience because he has been both a player and a coach in the SEC. I have enjoyed competing with him and look forward to working with him to advance the LSU program.”
The Quito, Ecuador native guided two All-Americans, Alexis Heugas and Antoine Baroz, to the quarterfinals of the 2012 NCAA Doubles Tournament and has had players qualify for the NCAA Individual Championships in four out of his five years as an assistant coach.
“I am extremely honored to become a part of a very successful program that Jeff has built. I want to thank Jeff for giving me the opportunity to further the success of LSU Men’s Tennis,” Stiegwardt said. “LSU has always had a place in my heart, from the campus, to the culture and the people.
“LSU is certainly one of the top athletic programs in the nation, and Jeff is a first class person and coach. He’s someone I can learn a lot from, and I’m excited to get to work and get ready for the season. We know that we can have something special here. The new facility is one of the best in the country and will help us bring in the recruits that we are targeting.”
During his first season with Auburn, Stiegwardt coached two players into the NCAA Individual Championships and also led the team to its 16th straight NCAA Tournament appearance in 2014.
In the 2014-15 season Stiegwardt coached Lukas Ollert to the singles title in the ITA Regional Finals. He also worked with Ollert and his partner Marko Krickovic who finished as ITA Regional runners up in doubles.
While coaching at VCU, Stiegwardt steered both the men’s and women’s teams to consecutive conference titles. Two men’s players were named the conference Most Valuable Player of the Year, and the men’s team finished ranked in the top-30 during each of his two seasons with the Rams.
Outside of the collegiate ranks, Stiegwardt served as the travelling coach for Giovanni Lapentti, No. 110 in the ATP rankings, on the professional tour. Prior to VCU, Stiegwardt was also the former Executive Director of Tennis at SportsQuest Academy in Richmond, Virginia, and the tennis pro and Junior Academy Director at Willow Oaks Country Club.
After beginning his collegiate career at the University of Florida in 2003, Stiegwardt transferred to Georgia State University and graduated in 2007 with a bachelor’s degree in business management after playing the No. 1 court in both singles and doubles for two seasons. The two-time team captain helped lead the Panthers to their highest team ranking in school history at No. 33.
The 2007 Colonial Athletic Association Most Outstanding Performer became the first tennis player in Georgia State history to qualify for the NCAA Individual Championships in singles after finishing his senior season ranked in the top-50.
Stiegwardt was named First Team All-CAA and Second Team All-CAA for doubles during his senior season. He was also chosen as the Student-Athlete of the Year at Georgia State during his junior season.
He received the CAA Commissioner’s Award during his two years at Georgia State and was named to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll.
Stiegwardt also competed at Wimbledon and French Open Junior events and played for Ecuador in the Davis Cup. He was the Ecuador singles and doubles champion in the Under 12, 14, 16 and 18 age groups and was one of the top junior players in the ITF world rankings at No. 40 in singles and No. 24 in doubles.