Dann Nelson Hometown: Edmond, Okla. Last College: Oklahoma Christian ('97) / Central Oklahoma ('01) Position: Head Coach Experience: 5th Year

Dann Nelson is in his fifth year as the head men's tennis coach at Southern Illinois Unviersity, after finishing 18-7 overall and 5-1 in the Missouri Valley Conference in 2008-09, while also leading the Salukis to their first MVC title in 19 years and a berth in the NCAA Tournament

2008-09 was a banner year for the Salukis, as they captured the third MVC title in SIU history (first since 1990) and an automatic berth to the 2009 NCAA Men's Tennis Championships. During the season, SIU received a wide variety of honors, including having four players being named to the all-conference team (Hugo Vidal, Felipe Villasenor, Lucas Waked, and Eric West). Off the court, the team also achieved unprecedented success, as two Salukis - Vidal and Anton Leonenko - and were named to the Academic All-Conference team. In addition, West was named the MVC's Freshman of the Year and Nelson himself was named the MVC Coach of the Year.

2007-08 was a year of peaks and valleys for the Salukis, as they finished 12-14 on the year and 3-3 in the MVC. Nelson's team, however, did finish strong, as they finished the season by winning their final two matches, allowing them to finish fourth in the MVC, the best standing ever for the Salukis in the regular season. However, SIU would fall in the semifinals to eventual MVC champion Drake

2006-07 brought success for SIU in many areas, including the highest MVC finish in eight years and a No. 8 ranking in the Central Region final rankings. Felipe Villasenor had a final ranking at No. 30 in the Central Region. In the fall of 2007, the Salukis gained their first MVC individual singles title in 16 years, with Hugo Vidal ranked at No. 3. Nelson earned the ITA Midwest Section Community Service award for establishing the Saluki Tennis Academy.

2005-06 was a successful year for the Salukis during which several players entered the SIU record books. Senior Bojan Ilievski posted nine singles' wins during the fall season to tie for fourth all-time at SIU. Freshman Andrei Bubnov and junior Sergio Sanchez also made the fall singles' win list at six and seven, respectively. The 2006 Salukis finished the fall 52-13 in singles and 27-8 in doubles, the best record (11-10) and best conference finish (sixth) since Southern's 1999 season.

In his first season at SIU, Nelson coached the No. 28 nationally-ranked doubles duo of Sanchez and Felipe Villasenor. The tandem reached the quarterfinals of the ITA fall regional and defeated the No. 6 doubles duo in the country when they beat Arkansas' Rohan Gajjar and Adrains Zguns. The Salukis finished the season with an 11-10 record, marking the first winning season in seven years.

Prior to Nelson's move to SIU, he led Western Illinois' men's tennis team from 2003-2005. In the season prior to Nelson's arrival at Western, the Leathernecks had not won a dual match and had not won a conference dual match in two years.

Nelson quickly turned things around, guiding Western to a second-place regular-season Mid-Continent Conference finish in 2004. His team posted a 5-1 conference record and a 9-4 overall record; Western's best finish in eight years.

From 2001 to 2003, Nelson served as head coach at Westminster College, an NCAA Division III school in Fulton, Mo. In 2003, Westminster posted a 13-2 record to earn a conference title, and Nelson was named Coach of the Year in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

The 2002 and 2003 season were very successful for Nelson's team. Westminster earned team titles in both seasons and posted a 19-7 record for the two combined years. Westminster also earned two conference titles and had ten athletes selected to the All-Conference team during that time period. In 2002 the team earned the school's first regional ranking in its history and the doubles team of John Hall and Ryan Carney earned a perfect 13-0 record. Carney was also successful in 2003, with a 17-match winning streak, posting a 17-0 singles record and earning Student Athlete of the Year honors.

From 1997 to 2001 Nelson served as a teching professional at the Edmond Racquet Club in Edmond, Okla. As the Associate Director of Junior Development, Nelson worked with several nationally-ranked players as well as numerous state champions. Several of Nelson's students went on to play Division I tennis.

Nelson began his coaching career in 1997 as an assistant at NAIA Oklahoma Christian University, his alma mater, where he also earned All-America honors as a player. While playing for Oklahoma Christian, Nelson amassed a 44-5 doubles record spanning the 1995 and 1996 seasons. He also participated in the NAIA Championships in 1995 and 1996. During Nelson's senior season, Oklahoma Christian earned the Sooner Athletic Conference title, the Region V Team title and achieved a No. 4 national ranking.

Nelson served as a Volunteer Assistant at Central Oklahoma, an NCAA Division II school, while working on his Master's Degree. Nelson graduated from Oklahoma Christian in 1997, with a bachelor's degree in social studies. He earned a master's degree in education from Central Oklahoma in 2001.

Nelson and his wife, Casey, have two girls, Khana (7) and Nanaiya (4) and reside in Carbondale, Ill.