UNIVERSITY CENTER -- Jenn Boehm has announced that she will step down from her position as Saginaw Valley State University Women's Tennis Head Coach after leading the program for nine seasons.     

Boehm, who began her coaching career at SVSU in January of 2011, recorded 89 victories during her tenure and led the Cardinals to GLIAC Tournament berths in eight of her nine seasons. She led the team to fourth-place league finishes in the 2016 and 2017 seasons, which was the best finish for the program since the 2000 campaign. Under Boehm's direction, 21 student-athletes earned All-GLIAC honors and 34 were named to the GLIAC All-Academic Team.

This past fall, the Cardinals finished sixth in the GLIAC regular season standings and at the 2019 GLIAC Tournament. Both Maddie Miller and Joanna Gao earned All-GLIAC honors for their third time in 2019 while Nicole Johnson was named all-league for her first time.  

In the 2016-17 season, then junior Danielle Slonac was named the ITA / Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship Award winner for the Midwest Region, which recognizes players who exhibit outstanding sportsmanship and leadership as well as scholastic, extracurricular and tennis achievements. Her teammate, Ana Pico Garcia, was named as a CoSIDA Academic All-District honoree as well during the season. 

Coach Boehm spoke to her time leading the Cardinals as the head coach for nearly a decade...

"Being the head tennis coach at SVSU has brought many blessings to my life. There have been incredible people – especially the young women in this program over the past nine years – who have truly become a part of my family. My children affectionately refer to the team as their 'sisters.' I will continue to cheer them on as Cardinals and in life.

The players' families have been a consistent source of support throughout the years and we will miss the regular interactions with them. I am thankful to the former players and parents who volunteered to serve as assistant coaches. The program would not be where it is today without their commitment and passion for SVSU tennis. Many of our tennis alumni have stayed connected to me and to the university and that has also been very meaningful.

There are some unsung heroes, like our athletic trainers and strength & conditioning staff who are in the daily trenches, as well as people behind the scenes in Athletics and across campus. It takes a team of people who genuinely care and want the best for these student-athletes and I'm grateful to those who have gone above and beyond for the women in this program. I would also like to thank my SVSU coaching colleagues who have been a tremendous support and resource for me, both personally and professionally.

People see what a coach does on the court or field of competition, but it is often the intangibles and personal interactions that have the greatest impact on the success of a program and the student-athletes within it. Those aspects of the job have been the most rewarding for me. However, like many things in life, only those who have been a coach can truly appreciate the full scope of the job and the toll it can take on you mentally, physically, and emotionally.

Stepping away from this role is bittersweet. I love the young women in the program. I love them dearly. But one thing has become crystal clear: there is nothing more important than the well-being of me and my family. My husband, children, and extended family have been an amazing support system and I look forward to being more present in our next chapter together."

SVSU Director of Athletics John Decker spoke to the impact Boehm has had on the program...

"We will miss Jenn's wealth of tennis experience and her dedication to the welfare of the student-athletes who have played in our program during her tenure. Jenn established and cultivated an environment that reflected a genuine feeling among the players and fans of our tennis program that she cared about them as she would for her own family."

The Athletic Department is in the process of finding an interim head coach for the remainder of the 2019-20 season before a search is conducted for a head coach. 

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