University of North Carolina Asheville Men's Tennis

Dustin Hale was named the new Head Men’s Tennis Coach for UNC Asheville on July 16, 2025. Hale is the 11th head coach in program history. Hale comes to Asheville following eight seasons at the helm of the tennis program at Sweet Briar College. This past year, the Vixens went 15-7, finishing their season by winning the Eastern College Athletic Conference Division III Women's Tennis Championship. Hale is the winningest head coach in Sweet Briar program history, compiling a 105-59 record over eight seasons. Hale led the Vixens to three consecutive Old Dominion Athletic Conference Championship appearances from 2021-23. During the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons, Sweet Briar posted back-to-back 9-1 conference records. Hale had two individuals make it to the NCAA Division III Women’s Tennis Doubles Championship during the 2020-21 season, marking the Vixens’ first appearance on the NCAA Doubles Championship stage since 1990. The Vixens posted a 15-6 dual-season record during the 2020-21 season, with the .778 winning percentage marking the first above .700 since the 2003 season (11-4, .733) and the most combined singles and doubles wins (79) since 2015 (82). For his efforts in 2021, Hale was named ODAC Coach of the Year and the Virginia Sports Information Directors Coach of the Year. Hale’s teams have also found success off the court as he has had two ODAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year winners, 51 ODAC All-Academic Honorees, two ITA All-Academic teams (2022 & 2024), 20 ITA Scholar-Athletes

The Bulldogs posted another solid year with Atkinson on staff in 2024-25, as the Bulldogs reached the Big South Conference Championship match for the second straight year marking the first back-to-back title match appearances in the program's Division I history also playing in the UTR Sports NIT Championship. Asheville posted a 12-9 record on the season, going 8-2 at the Asheville Racquet Club Downtown. Asheville sported two First Team All-Conference selections in singles play in Freddy Murray and Tarek Erlewein, while Olle Sonesson Lidholt was named to the All-Conference Second Team in singles play. Asheville also had two Second Team All-Conference pairs in doubles in Murray/Cian Ingles and Lidholt/Erlewein. Lidholt was the Big South Conference's Co-Newcomer of the Year in the first year of the award, while Erlewein was the Big South Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year and also named to the All-Academic Team. Erlewein and Ingles also earned College Sports Communicators Academic All-District honors. Atkinson was instrumental in an incredible display in his first season on staff with the Bulldogs in 2023-24, as Asheville went 16-8 on the season on the way to capturing the team’s first Big South Conference Championship since 1986 and the team’s first-ever berth in the NCAA Tourmament. Frost coached nine total Big South Conference All-Conference honors, including Scholar-Athlete of the Year Jon Brann Reid. Sam Nicholson and Freddy Murray each earned First Team All-Conference