COLUMBIA, Mo. - Former ATP professional and ITA All-American at LSU, Colt Gaston, has been named the new Mizzou Tennis Assistant Coach, as announced today by head coach Sasha Schmid.
The Rome, Ga., native joins the Tigers coaching staff after serving as the assistant coach for Furman University men's tennis this past season. Following his successful collegiate and professional playing career, Gaston has continued to build his coaching resume throughout the national tennis community.
"I'm thrilled to announce Colt Gaston will be joining our staff at Mizzou as our new women's tennis assistant coach," head coach Sasha Schmid said. "Colt's experience and success at the highest levels of collegiate and professional tennis as a player and coach are invaluable to our team. Specifically, his knowledge and insights into the highly competitive world of SEC tennis provides him with a unique coaching perspective for our players."
"The areas of player development, recruiting, and commitment to academic excellence were all crucial to me in the hiring of this position. We're fortunate to have Colt join our staff, because he will excel in each of those areas and he'll be an outstanding fit for Mizzou tennis."
Gaston's coaching experience began in 2008, as he served as a High Performance Coach for Weil Tennis Academy in Ojai, Calif. From 2009-12, he continued his experience as a private coach for IMG Tennis Academy and ATP/WTA.
Before joining Furman's men's tennis program in 2014, Gaston served as the Head of Tennis for Made Scholarships, and Tennis Director at ATI Tennis Academy.
"I'm very excited to be joining the women's tennis program at Mizzou," Gaston said. "Sasha Schmid is a great leader with a strong desire to take this team to the next level, and I feel fortunate to be able to come on board and help with that process. I have learned a lot at Furman University under head coach Kelly Jones, but I'm excited about coaching in the SEC and working with such a great group of tennis student-athletes."
Gaston's professional and collegiate playing career included a top 500 ranking on the ATP Tour, three Future Doubles Championship Titles, and served as a member of the Dunlop ATP traveling squad.
Before breaking through on the professional circuit, Gaston was a four-year letterwinner at LSU from 2003-08, and culminated with ITA Doubles All-American honors in 2007. During his junior season in Baton Rouge, La., Gaston and teammate Danny Bryan claimed the SEC Indoor Doubles Championship. The duo reached as high as No. 3 in the country according to the ITA Division I rankings.
Further personal accolades at LSU included Second-Team All-SEC honors in 2006, and earned both SEC Honor Roll and Director Cub honors in 2007 and 2008.
Check-in to MUTigers.com for the latest information on all things Mizzou tennis. You can also find the Tigers on social media, by liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter (@MizzouTennis).