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Matt Lucas was named the head men's tennis coach at UNF in August of 2017. Lucas brings over 10 years of coaching experience to UNF having coached at all levels of competitive tennis during his career.
Career Record as Head Coach: 94-70 (eight seasons; two at Pacific, six at UNF)
- January 13, 2018 - First win as an Osprey vs. Florida A&M (4-0)
- March 24, 2018 - First ASUN win against Stetson (5-2)
- April 22, 2018 - Clinched ASUN Tournament Title vs. Stetson (4-1)
- May 12, 2018 - First NCAA Tournament Appearance vs. Miami
- Feb. 14, 2020 - Earned his 50th career win in a 5-2 defeat of UNCW
- March 2, 2022 - UNF earned a No. 68 ITA team ranking. UNF would remained ranked for the next seven polls.
- May 23, 2022 - Dominik Barton appeared in the NCAA Singles Championships, the first individual appearance for an Osprey during Lucas' tenure.
- April 8, 2023 - Claimed a share of the ASUN Regular Season Championship, North Florida's second during his tenure
- April 12, 2023 - Jonas Hartenstein and Rodrigo Crespo named UNF's first-ever ASUN Doubles Pair of the Year
- May 9, 2023 - UNF has three Ospreys named to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team, setting a program record
- 2018 ASUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year (Lasse Muscheites)
- 4 ASUN All-Academic Team honoree
- 14 ASUN All-Conference selections
- 3 ASUN All-Freshman honoree
- 2022 & 2023 North Florida Most Improved Male Student-Athlete (Jonas Hartenstein and Rodrigo Crespo)
- 3 College Sports Communicators Academic All-District honorees
- 2023 ASUN Doubles Pair of the Year (Jonas Hartenstein & Rodrigo Crespo)
- UNF record: 73-50
- In his first season at the helm, Lucas led the Ospreys to an undefeated ASUN season and won the program's second-ever ASUN Tournament title.
- Lucas was named ASUN Coach of the Year by his peers.
- He saw Lasse Muscheites earn ASUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year as well as five players earning ASUN All-Conference honors.
- Lucas and the Ospreys went 14-11 in the 2018-19 season, advancing to the ASUN Championship match for the second consecutive season.
- Freshman Dominik Barton tallied 21 wins in the 2018-19 season, becoming the first UNF freshman to post 20 wins during a season.
- Sahil Deshmukh finished his UNF career with the second-most singles victories in program history.
- Put up an 8-2 record in 2020 before the season was prematurely ended due to the COVID-19 developments.
- Lucas set a personal best mark for wins in a season during his tenure as UNF went 16-8 in 2022, its most victories in a season since the 2014-15 campaign. The Ospreys went 9-1 at home, its most wins at home and best home winning percentage since that 2014-15 season.
- Three Ospreys were named to the all-conference squad in 2022, with Dominik Barton earning a trip to the NCAA Singles Championships.
- 2023 featured another ring for UNF as the Ospreys won the ASUN Regular Season Title, going 16-7 and 7-1 in league play. North Florida advanced to the ASUN Championship match on its home courts
- North Florida achieved five different ASUN postseason honors, headlined by first team and ASUN Doubles Pair of the Year honors for Jonas Hartenstein and Rodrigo Crespo
Lucas came to the Ospreys after serving as the associate head coach for the University at Buffalo men's tennis team in 2016-17. The Bulls claimed the MAC regular season and tournament titles last year and advanced to the NCAA Tournament while producing five All-MAC players.
Prior to his season at Buffalo, Lucas worked one year as the Head Tennis Professional at The Palencia Club in St. Augustine, Fla. (2015-16) Before serving in the head pro position, Lucas spent a season as a traveling coach on the ITF Pro Circuit where he coached and traveled with Alex Valenstein. He helped guide her to Texas Tech University, where she became a singles and doubles starter on a Top-10 team.
Lucas previously coached in the college ranks in 2014 when he was a volunteer assistant coach at Wake Forest University for one season. While at Wake Forest, Lucas helped the Demon Deacons reach #13 in the ITA National rankings while also helping three players earn All-ACC recognition.
Prior to Wake Forest, Lucas spent three seasons at South Carolina as an assistant coach helping turn the Gamecocks into a Top 25 team. Lucas was named the ITA Carolina Region Assistant Coach of the Year for his success at South Carolina and helped sign the No. 3 recruiting class in the nation in 2011.
Before becoming the assistant coach for the Gamecocks, Lucas served as the head men's tennis coach at the University of the Pacific for two seasons, leading the team to as high as No. 52 in the ITA Rankings. Lucas went 27-21 with the Tigers. Prior to his stint on the West Coast, he was an assistant coach at Princeton from 2006-09.
Lucas played collegiate tennis at Appalachian State and N.C. State, rising as high as No. 63 in the ITA Singles Rankings while with the Wolfpack. He graduated from N.C. State in 2002 with a degree in humanities.
