The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Women's Golf

in Chinese After seven outstanding seasons as the women’s golf head coach at Maryland, former All-SEC Lady Vol golf standout and 2021 Big Ten Coach of the Year Diana Cantú (pronounced: dee-YON-uh kahn-TOO) returned to Tennessee to take the reins at her alma mater. Cantú was named the program’s fourth all-time head coach on June 8, 2021, and enters her fifth season leading UT's program in 2025-26. Tennessee’s 13th-place finish at the 2025 NCAA Championships marked the program’s best postseason result since 2015. Cantú' and her team also surpassed 100 head-to-head wins for the first time since 2019. The Lady Vols used a strong showing at NCAA Lubbock Regional to reach the NCAA Championships for the 15th time in program history during the 2024-25 season and for the first time since 2019. During the 2023-24 season, Tennessee notched a 289.40 team-round average, the lowest in program history. They also set a program record with 74 rounds of par or better and the best win percentage since the 2011-2012 season at .590. Additionally, UT advanced to its 30th NCAA Regional in program history. At NCAA Regionals, Bailey Davis notched a third-place finish, which was her best of the season and the second-best of her collegiate career. The trajectory of the Lady Vols' program showed significant uptick in 2022-23, as Tennessee nearly tripled its team rounds of par or better from the previous year. The Lady Vols were selected to the 2023 NCAA Westfield Regional. Cantú was a student-athlete at

Tennessee head coach Diana Cantu welcomed former Lady Vols golf standout Anna Newell as an assistant coach in July of 2023. During the 2023-24 season, Tennessee notched a 289.40 team-round average, the lowest in program history. They also set a program record with 74 rounds of par or better and the best win percentage since the 2011-2012 season at .590. Additionally, UT advanced to its 30th NCAA Regional in program history. At NCAA Regionals, Bailey Davis notched a third-place finish, which was her best of the season and the second-best of her collegiate career. "I am so excited to welcome Anna back to Big Orange Country," Cantú said. "Anna is a former Lady Vol golfer who had great success as a student-athlete at UT. As a two-time All-American, she represented this program with excellence and pride. Her passion for the Lady Vol legacy and our Tennessee traditions is truly unmatched. As a golfer, coach and mentor, Anna always brings great energy. Her experience playing at the highest level and as a golf instructor will be a great asset to this program." Newell was a student-athlete at UT from 2014-18. Her player bio can be viewed HERE. "My time at the University of Tennessee and representing the Lady Volunteer golf program has shaped my life over the years," Newell said. "With such a historic program, I am honored to be able help shape that legacy again." Boasting professional golf experience, Newell competed in the Symetra Tour Rookie Season in 2018 where she started in 11 ev

Dr. Austin Smith is entering his second year as an Olympic Sport Performance Assistant with Tennessee Athletics in 2022-23. He is responsible for overseeing strength and conditioning training for the women's golf program and also assists with Sports Science initiatives for the Olympic Sports Performance department. From December 2021 until the end of the 2021-22 academic year, Smith served as Tennessee's interim Director of Baseball Sports Performance. During that stint, the Volunteers authored a record-breaking season, breaking multiple program records while ranking No. 1 unanimously in college baseball for a majority of the season. Tennessee baseball in 2022 posted the best record in program history (57-9), while also posting the second-best conference mark in SEC history (25-5). With Smith coordinating high-performance training, the Vols won the SEC Tournament for the first time since 1995. Before joining the staff at Tennessee, Smith spent two years as a strength and conditioning coach with the Chicago Cubs organization, working with both the major league team and its Low-A affiliate, the Myrtle Beach Pelicans. Smith spent six months working as a performance coach and push coach with the USA Bobsled and Skeleton Federation. While completing his doctorate, Smith served as the head strength and conditioning coach for the Milligan University track & field program while also holding the position of assistant coach responsible for the throwers. Smith received his undergraduate

Kristen Golightly is set to join Tennessee's women's golf coaching staff as an assistant coach, head coach Diana Cantu announced Thursday. Golightly joins Ca...

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Sammie Charters joined the sports medicine staff full time in June of 2015. Serving as an Associate Athletic Trainer, she was recently promoted to Co-Manager of the East Athletic Training Room in July of 2024 and serves as the primary athletic trainer with the volleyball and women’s golf teams. In addition to her clinical responsibilities, she oversees the Assistant Athletic Trainer for men’s and women’s tennis and the intern athletic trainer for the Tennessee spirit programs. Her current administrative duties include Nike ordering and inventory, assisting with Graduate Assistant/Intern hiring, new staff orientation & onboarding, women’s health liaison and Graduate Assistant/Intern education programming. During Charters’ second season with volleyball, the Lady Vols enjoyed one of the best campaigns in program history in 2023, advancing to the regional semifinals for the first time since 2005, hosting the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2011 and earning the program's best-ever national seed at No. 10. She worked with four All-Americans, including 2023 AVCA Southeast Region Player of the Year and SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Morgahn Fingall as well as freshman standout and All-SEC setter Caroline Kerr. A staple with the program since the 2016-17 season, Charters continues to serve women’s golf during an impressive stretch, as the team boasts seven NCAA Regional appearances in eight years (excludes the 2019-20 season) and a pair of NCAA