???Championships were nonexistent in Buffalo's first 12 years in Division I. On April 27, the women's tennis team beat the No.1-seeded Western Michigan Broncos at the Ellicott Tennis Courts for the school's first conference championship. The victory made Kathy Twist the first head coach at Buffalo to win a MAC Championship.
???Twist, in her 12th season as head coach of Buffalo's women's tennis team, did a lot of jumping around before falling into her current position.
???While a college student, Twist had no intentions of becoming a tennis coach. She wanted to be involved in the medical field coming out of D'Youville College. Twist never would have thought, years down the road, that she would be leading a team to the sole conference championship in the history of the University at Buffalo.
???"In college, my main focus was medical," Twist said. "I was a nurse working on a hospital staff, until somebody came knocking on my door, asking if I wanted to be a coach."
???Answering the call, Twist came to Buffalo with what she had learned playing in college and not much else. Twist was knowledgeable of the game of tennis but had no coaching experience.
???Twist joined the Bulls athletic staff as an assistant women's coach in 1994 before filling the same position for the men's team. She gained experience on the job, picking up tips and tricks along the way. With those useful nuggets of information and great tennis intelligence, Twist eventually put together a championship-caliber team.
???A coach isn't just responsible for coaching a team. Thanks to Twist and her staff, new, foreign players have been recruited to the tennis team's roster.
???"Contacts feel comfortable sending their kids here," Twist said. "When they find out our players have one of the highest combined grade point averages in the nation, they really feel confident sending players over."
???During her time at D'Youville, where she gained most of her knowledge of tennis, Twist dominated the courts in singles and doubles play. The information she shares with her current players can be traced back to what she picked up in school.
???"I was always a student of the game; I had great coaches," Twist said. "I played No. 1 singles and doubles, and was undefeated for four years in singles."
???While many are worried that Twist is going to head to a better school with a better program, Twist wants to set the record straight.
???"I am set in Buffalo-born and raised here," Twist said. "I think this program is heading in a really good direction, and I have no plans of leaving anytime soon."
???With the 2009 season underway, Twist looks to lead her squad into another championship.
Photo: Breadchastick / Wikimedia Commons
