**Release courtesy of UW-Whitewater Sports Information

WHITEWATER, Wis.--After 23 remarkable seasons leading the Warhawk men's and women's tennis programs at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Head Coach Frank Barnes has announced his retirement, marking the end of an era defined by excellence, mentorship and a profound impact on student-athletes both on and off the court.  

"Frank is one of the most decorated coaches in the history of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and UW-Whitewater," said Director of Athletics Ryan Callahan. "He has turned UW-Whitewater into the best public Division III tennis program in the country and has worked tirelessly to improve the tennis facilities and overall quality of the program during his tenure. I am forever grateful for Frank's leadership and support in advancing Warhawk athletics."  

Coach Barnes has been at the helm of the Warhawk men's tennis program since 2002 and the UW-Whitewater women's team since 2003. Throughout his tenure, Barnes has guided UW-Whitewater through one of the toughest Division III schedules in the Midwest – a slate that features Division I and II opponents, as well as some of the top Division III institutions in the region each year.

Still, the Warhawks have been dominant under Barnes. Under his leadership, the tennis program has become a model of consistency and competitiveness. The UW-Whitewater men have not lost a conference match since 2010. Meanwhile, the women's program had a win streak that eclipsed 130 matches against WIAC opponents. The Warhawk women have won 18 consecutive league titles. These feats are even more impressive considering UW-Whitewater had not won a conference championship in the 13 years prior to Barnes taking the helm.

UW-Whitewater has also increased its national presence – specifically since 2007. The Warhawk women have participated in the NCAA Team Championship the last 17 seasons while the men have made the tournament 16 times in that span. UW-Whitewater has advanced to the Sweet 16 eleven times since 2007. Multiple singles and doubles players – 47 in fact – have qualified for the NCAA Individual Championship and/or Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Championship in that timeframe. Both programs and additional Warhawk individuals have held national rankings in the ITA polls over the last 15 seasons. Barnes has coached Warhawk tennis players to 33 All-America honors during his tenure.

Beyond competitive achievements on the court, Barnes stresses academic success as a pillar of the tennis program. The men's and women's teams have been consistently recognized as an ITA All-Academic Team over the last decade. Individual Warhawks have continually been recognized as ITA Scholar Athletes – achieving a grade point average of at least 3.5. He has coached 11 Academic All-Americans, 12 WIAC Judy Kruckman Scholar Athletes of the Year and 76 UW-Whitewater Chancellor Scholar Athletes. 

Due to the success of the UW-Whitewater tennis program and Barnes' engagement in the tennis community, he has been honored on numerous occasions from the conference to the national stage. Barnes was named the ITA National Coach of the Year in 2023-24. He earned Regional Coach of the Year honors from the ITA in both 2024 and 2016. In 2010, Barnes was named the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR) National College Coach of the Year across all divisions. He was selected as the PTR Wisconsin Member of the Year in 2009. Barnes is a 10-time WIAC Women's Coach of the Year, a four-time New Jersey Athletic Conference Men's Coach of the Year and was the 2025 WIAC Men's Coach of the Year this season. Barnes was named the WIAC All-Time Women's Tennis Coach as part of the league's centennial celebration in 2012. For his outreach and community presence, Barnes received the Midwest United States Tennis Association (USTA)/ITA Community and Campus Outreach Award twice, the USTA Midwest Rollie Mueller Presidents Award and was selected as the K-Swiss National Coach of the Year twice as a teaching professional.  

Barnes has been an active member in the tennis community throughout his career. He speaks regularly at tennis conventions across the Midwest. Barnes is currently serving on the Wisconsin Tennis Association Collegiate Committee, he previously chaired the ITA Men's Central Region Tennis Ranking Committee and had served on the men's and women's ITA and NCAA Regional Ranking Committees multiple times. In addition, he has served on the USTA/WTA Collegiate and Junior Development Committees and both the men's and women's Midwest ITA Regional Tournament Committees.  

Through his fervent commitment to growing the sport, Barnes has created one of the top summer tennis camps in the nation as the Warhawk Tennis Camps Director. He has spent over 20 years hosting numerous camps that welcome over 700 campers to UW-Whitewater each summer.  

Barnes, a University of Wisconsin (Madison) alumnus, earned his Master's Degree in Professional Development with an emphasis in Health, Human Performance, Recreation and Coaching from UW-Whitewater. After working in the professional sector for a number of years, Barnes returned to Whitewater in 1998 as a teaching professional before taking the head coaching position. 

"I've felt so honored to have been part of the Warhawk Family and Athletic Department that has such an incredible tradition and reputation of success," said Coach Barnes. "That success stems from great leadership and support from the Athletic Directors I've been lucky enough to work with, especially our current Director of Athletics Ryan Callahan and the entire administrative team leading this incredible institution. I've been lucky to have worked with hundreds of impressive student-athletes and incredible assistant coaches and support staff in 23 years as head coach. They have all helped to form the Warhawk Tennis Family for me and my family." 

"It's not about the championships, it's about the relationships ... but the championships were pretty fun," added Barnes.  

Although Barnes' last official day is in August, he will continue with the program in a volunteer capacity and continue to have a major role with Warhawk Tennis Camps in the future. 

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