St. John's University-New York Men's Tennis

Dillon Pottish enters his sixth season as the head coach of the men’s tennis team after arriving at St. John's in August of 2018. In his fifth season at the helm in 2022-23, Pottish guided the program to its seventh BIG EAST Championship and the second during his tenure. The head coach led a group of newcomers to an NCAA Tournament, earning an automatic bid after rolling through the conference tournament and eventually sweeping Butler in the BIG EAST Championship match, 4-0. The NCAA Tournament appearance marked the fifth in nine years for the Red Storm men's tennis program. Overall, St. John's finished the 2022-23 campaign with an overall record of 20-6 in dual match play, the first 20-win season for the squad since 2016. The Red Storm finished incredibly strong tallying 11 wins its last 13 matches to end the year and compiled an undefeated record, 6-0, against BIG EAST opponents. The men's tennis team garnered plenty of accolades this past season as Pottish and his staff were named the BIG EAST Coaching of the Year. Graduate student Diogo Marques was named BIG EAST Player of the Year and the conference tournament's most outstanding player. The Setubal, Portugal native was tabbed to all BIG EAST first team and was joined by teammate Carl Gustafsson. Additionally, Marques and doubles partner Axel Vila Antuna reached as high as no. 54 in the ITA National rankings. In his fourth season at the helm, Pottish posted a 17-6 dual-match record, reached a third-straight BIG EAST Champ

Brenden Volk is entering his fourth season as the assistant coach on Dillon Pottish's staff after joining at the start of the 2022-23 academic year. The New York, N.Y. native, brings a diverse background combining finance, coaching, and sports analytics. He previously served as a Senior Financial Associate at Innocap Group in New York, specializing in hedge fund operations and client management, and as an Assistant Tennis Coach at William & Mary, supporting player development and program operations. Volk also gained sports industry experience as a Data Analyst Intern with Optimum Sports, contributing to data-driven marketing strategy. In his coliegiate career at William & Mary and Northwestern for his freshman season, Volk was named First Team All-CAA in singles (2021) and Second Team All-CAA in doubles (2019). He was also selected to the Second Team VaSID All-State in singles (2021) and Second Team VaSID All-State in doubles (2018, 2019, 2020). Brenden is a five-time CAA Doubles Team of the Week selection and two-time CAA Player of the Week honoree and earned the W&M Provost Award (2020–21) and was named to the CAA Commissioner’s Academic Honor Roll four times (2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21). Also named an ITA Scholar-Athlete in 2021.

Carlos Maldonado enters his second season as an assistant coach on Dillon Pottish’s staff after joining at the start of the 2019-20 academic year. The Queens, N.Y. native, is currently the CEO and founder of Dead Set Inc., a tennis clothing and apparel distributor since 2013. He also serves as the CEO and founder of Dead Set Inc. Tennis, where he has coached and trained ATP and WTA (ITF professional players) since 2009. With Dead Set Inc. Tennis, Maldonado has scouted and developed future tennis professionals, guiding players on making the transition from the junior level to the professional circuit. Prior to establishing Dead Set Inc. Tennis, Maldonado was employed by the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Fresh Meadows, New York as a professional coach from 1998 through 2007. Some of the roles that Maldonado served at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center included conducting U.S. Open Player Clinics, teaching individual and group classes from beginner to high-level adults and juniors, and recruiting top-ranking juniors across the country. Playing Qualifications Summary Played sectional and national tournaments Hitting Partner for ATP and WTA Touring Professionals Professional Memberships/Certifications USPTA Professional I, PTR Professional, High-Performance Coach