Cris James from Men’s Tennis Earns ITA Assistant Coach of the Year
6/13/2025 11:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
TEMPE, Ariz. – Assistant coach for NC State men's tennis, Cris James, has been named the ITA Assistant Coach of the Year as part of the 2024-25 ITA National Award Winners, as announced by the ITA on Friday morning.
Earlier this week it was revealed that James won the Carolina Region ITA Assistant Coach of the Year award for the second year in a row. James has now also claimed the national honor for the same award, making it the first honor for an assistant coach in the program.
After joining the squad in July of 2017 when Kyle Spencer took the helm of the program, James has now been on the coaching staff with the Pack for eight seasons.
Helping lead the recruiting efforts for the Pack, James was instrumental in recruiting each of the members to make this year's historical squad. In fall action, three singles players qualified for the NCAA Singles Championships, marking the most qualified for the Pack in a season. Looking at the dual spring season, the team climbed to a new program-high ITA ranking twice, No. 5 on March 11 and then No. 4 on April 1. The team's previous high of No. 6 was set in March of 2020 just as COVID hit.
In February, the guys qualified for the ITA National Team Indoors for the first time in five years after upsetting ninth-ranked Mississippi State in Starkville. The Pack held a 13-match win streak from February 26 to April 6 where in that timespan, wins were collected over 10 ranked teams, four of which were in the top-25, and two in the top-10. Setting a new program record for most conference wins in a single season, NC State tallied 12 wins in the competitive Atlantic Coast Conference with its only loss to 2025 national champions Wake Forest.
To cap off the season, the team reached the 2025 NCAA Super Regional, for just the third time in program history. By the end of the season, the red-and-white owned 14 ranked wins, seven of which were in the top-25 and four in the top-10.
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