By Hannah Bartlebaugh, Staff Writer
Before their Sept. 13 match against Carthage College, the women’s tennis team hosted a surprise event honoring head coach Jane Nelson’s 40 years leading the program. The event, attended by several alumni of the team, was organized by assistant coach Karly Olson, with assistance from the team captains, seniors Madeline Gentry and Janet Kondo.
For Nelson, the celebration was one of the highlights of her career. “I had no idea that was going to happen. So I was shocked and appreciative of the event,” she said.
Nelson graduated from Wheaton in 1983 with a degree in physical education. During her time at Wheaton, she played on both the women’s tennis and basketball teams. She was named an All-American in tennis during her junior year and still ranks in the top 15 in multiple statistical categories for the basketball team.
“I think it’s helped me incorporate some of the team concepts of coaching into tennis, which I maybe wouldn’t have done if I had only been a tennis player,” she said.
In 1986, three years after graduating from college, Nelson began coaching the Wheaton women’s tennis team. She got the job after her former tennis coach happened to meet her sister at the grocery store. The coach asked if Nelson might be interested in coaching, which led to a meeting with Wheaton’s athletic director at the time, Tony Ladd, who offered her the position.
“When I graduated from Wheaton College, I had no thought in my mind that I would come back and coach,” she said. “It was totally a gift from the Lord that just happened.”
Under Nelson, the team has enjoyed consistent success. According to the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW)’s historical records, Wheaton has won 22 conference championships during Nelson’s tenure, including 10 consecutive titles between 2005 and 2014. Nelson has also been named CCIW Coach of the Year 10 times, the most of any CCIW coach since the records began in 2003.
Senior communication major and team captain Janet Kondo believes Nelson’s success is due to her teamwork mentality.
“ I think why she’s had so much success throughout the years is truly because she takes off the pressure off of us. This is a team effort. We win together, we lose together,” she said. “Jane has just reshaped my perspective of not only tennis, but genuinely my life in realizing that we are so much more than wins and losses.”
Despite her storied coaching career, Nelson sees her role as more than that of a coach. “I often think my first role is to be a mom away from home,” she said. “ But having an opportunity to challenge them, in their athletic pursuit of tennis and also to challenge them spiritually. I care about you as a person ahead of a tennis player.”
That care was echoed by Renae Schauer Smith ’91, who shared how Nelson would stock each player’s favorite snacks in the van before they traveled for matches. “ Not only did she care about our tennis game, she cared about our health in a holistic way,” she said.
Nelson takes the spiritual development of her players seriously. The team meets weekly in prayer groups, typically led by the captains, where they study the Bible and share prayer requests. It provides a space for the players to talk about their lives outside of tennis. Senior psychology major Madeline Gentry said the prayer group has been deeply meaningful. “I felt such a sense of belonging to the team and to the group in general,” she said.
Nelson also wants to teach her team what it means to live out their faith on the court. “The bottom line for us as Christians is that we are representing Christ in all that we do,” she said. “There’s a verse in Philippians that says, ‘Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.’ I think Philippians 1:27. So that for many, many years was our team verse.”
Nelson encourages her players to be Christlike examples by respecting their opponents on the court and prioritizing the team over individual success. The team’s motto is “Soli Deo Gloria,” which is Latin for “Glory to God Alone.”
Schauer Smith says that Nelson’s example of bringing Christ onto the court was one of the most important lessons she learned. “ The biggest impact for me with Jane is that she taught me how to, not only win and lose graciously, but compete in a way that is Christ-like,” she said.
The 40th-anniversary celebration was a way for the team to honor Nelson’s legacy. Gentry said that even during the celebration, Nelson wanted to keep the focus on the team. “Even in our team huddle, those who are on the team now, we were like ‘let’s yell “Team Jane” or something.’ And she said, ‘No, guys, I can’t be a part of this.’ She’s so selfless,” Gentry said.
First-year player Sophie Dew estimated that about 50 people attended the event. Alumni came from across the country and walked onto the court as the team was warming up. Because Nelson is not active on social media, the team used both social media and email to spread the word. After the match, there was a reception in her honor. Nelson said she appreciated being able to see her current players connect with alumni. “That’s what I love about the Wheaton tennis community is that it can span the time differences,” she said.
Athletic director Mike Schauer said Nelson holds a place among the great coaches in Wheaton’s history. “ If you take the totality of what we ought to be doing as coaches at Wheaton College, Jane is as good a coach as we’ve ever had,” he said. “She is competitively successful, her teams have won, and she makes a huge impact on the young women who have played for her.”
Looking ahead, Nelson hopes to continue coaching at Wheaton for the foreseeable future. “ I’m so thankful and grateful for the opportunity I’ve had to be here, and I would like to continue for a few more years,” she said. “ I don’t know what the Lord has planned. But my hope is that I can continue to learn from the Lord through coaching, and continue to develop wonderful relationships with these student-athletes.”
