Mariana Cobra Named Head Women's Tennis Coach
8/15/2016 9:37:00 AM | Women's Tennis
JACKSONVILLE – University of North Florida Director of Athletics Lee Moon announced the hiring of Mariana Cobra as the head coach for the UNF women's tennis program.
"We are excited to have someone with Mariana's coaching experience and level of success joining our program," said Moon. "She has led teams to the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back seasons and also demonstrated a strong commitment to academics. We feel like she is a perfect fit with our philosophy of competing for championships, excelling in the classroom and providing our student-athletes with the best possible college experience. Â "
Most recently the head coach at Idaho, Cobra comes to the Ospreys after two championship seasons with the Vandals. She led her team to back-to-back Big Sky Championships and the squad's third straight NCAA appearance.
"I want to thank Coach Moon for this tremendous opportunity of becoming the next leader of the Osprey women's tennis program," Cobra said. "I was very impressed with the family environment at North Florida and it quickly became apparent that this is the right fit for me as I continue growing professionally. I also want to thank the staff and my mentors at the University of Idaho, who have supported me and given women's tennis the opportunity to become one of the dominant teams in the Big Sky. I will miss my team at Idaho but I am ecstatic to make UNF my new family."
In her first season, Idaho posted a 15-9 record and broke Sacramento State's 13-year run as conference champions. Four players earned all-conference honors, while Galina Bykova was named the Big Sky Player of the Year and Cobra garnered Coach of the Year accolades.
During her second year, the Vandals recorded 19 victories en route to a No. 3 seed in the Big Sky. Idaho went on to defeat Northern Arizona for their second straight league title. Cobra coached freshman Marianna Petrei to the Big Sky Most Valuable Player, while seeing two others earn all-league recognition and another as an honorable mention.Â
In addition to their success on the courts, the Vandals earned academic success with a team grade-point average above a 3.0.
Prior to Idaho, Cobra spent time with DPF Sports & Exchange to help place South American student-athletes in American universities. Cobra spent time at her alma mater, Northern Iowa, for two seasons and helped coach the Missouri Valley Player of the Year. She also assisted at Case Western Reserve in 2011-12 and Middle Tennessee State for the 2010-11 season.
At Northern Iowa, Cobra was a three-time ITA Scholar-Athlete and a two-time MVC Scholar Athlete. She posted a 65-28 singles record to rank third in school history in career winning percentage. After graduating from UNI with a degree in physical education (exercise science and sport psychology emphasis), Cobra earned her master's degree in sports psychology while serving as a graduate assistant for the Panthers.
Cobra inherits a program that has won three straight Atlantic Sun Tournaments and two straight regular season titles with undefeated league records. Four members of the 2016 squad return, while four newcomers make up the rest of the team.
"Our women's tennis program has been highly successful over the past several years under Audra Cohen," added Moon. "We believe that Mariana has all the skills necessary to not only continue those successes but also help us reach even higher achievements."
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"We are excited to have someone with Mariana's coaching experience and level of success joining our program," said Moon. "She has led teams to the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back seasons and also demonstrated a strong commitment to academics. We feel like she is a perfect fit with our philosophy of competing for championships, excelling in the classroom and providing our student-athletes with the best possible college experience. Â "
Most recently the head coach at Idaho, Cobra comes to the Ospreys after two championship seasons with the Vandals. She led her team to back-to-back Big Sky Championships and the squad's third straight NCAA appearance.
"I want to thank Coach Moon for this tremendous opportunity of becoming the next leader of the Osprey women's tennis program," Cobra said. "I was very impressed with the family environment at North Florida and it quickly became apparent that this is the right fit for me as I continue growing professionally. I also want to thank the staff and my mentors at the University of Idaho, who have supported me and given women's tennis the opportunity to become one of the dominant teams in the Big Sky. I will miss my team at Idaho but I am ecstatic to make UNF my new family."
In her first season, Idaho posted a 15-9 record and broke Sacramento State's 13-year run as conference champions. Four players earned all-conference honors, while Galina Bykova was named the Big Sky Player of the Year and Cobra garnered Coach of the Year accolades.
During her second year, the Vandals recorded 19 victories en route to a No. 3 seed in the Big Sky. Idaho went on to defeat Northern Arizona for their second straight league title. Cobra coached freshman Marianna Petrei to the Big Sky Most Valuable Player, while seeing two others earn all-league recognition and another as an honorable mention.Â
In addition to their success on the courts, the Vandals earned academic success with a team grade-point average above a 3.0.
Prior to Idaho, Cobra spent time with DPF Sports & Exchange to help place South American student-athletes in American universities. Cobra spent time at her alma mater, Northern Iowa, for two seasons and helped coach the Missouri Valley Player of the Year. She also assisted at Case Western Reserve in 2011-12 and Middle Tennessee State for the 2010-11 season.
At Northern Iowa, Cobra was a three-time ITA Scholar-Athlete and a two-time MVC Scholar Athlete. She posted a 65-28 singles record to rank third in school history in career winning percentage. After graduating from UNI with a degree in physical education (exercise science and sport psychology emphasis), Cobra earned her master's degree in sports psychology while serving as a graduate assistant for the Panthers.
Cobra inherits a program that has won three straight Atlantic Sun Tournaments and two straight regular season titles with undefeated league records. Four members of the 2016 squad return, while four newcomers make up the rest of the team.
"Our women's tennis program has been highly successful over the past several years under Audra Cohen," added Moon. "We believe that Mariana has all the skills necessary to not only continue those successes but also help us reach even higher achievements."
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