Serving Success: A Feature Story on Joey Eskridge
Joey Eskridge, deemed an elite professional by the USPTA and high performance coach by the USTA, has begun his 17th year as Director of Tennis at Anderson University. While coaching the Trojans, Eskridge has won two conference tournaments, a regular season championship, and he has led the Trojans to the NCAA tournament four times.
“I am grateful for the success of the Trojan tennis program, and I believe that my past has prepared me well for this job,” said Eskridge.
Before his career as Trojan tennis director, Eskridge worked and developed both junior and professional players on the South Carolina coast. A few notable achievements by Eskridge include being the first in SCTA history to receive the John Newcomb Pro of the Year award in 2008, and later earning the Coach of the Year title from USTA South Carolina in 2013.
“Although I lived on the South Carolina coast for many years, I actually grew up playing tennis in the heart of Anderson, South Carolina. As an Anderson native, I practiced and played on the Trojan tennis court about 30 years ago,” said Eskridge.
In his high school tennis career, Eskridge secured two state championships for T. L. Hanna, the local Anderson high school, boys tennis program. He then went on to play for Winthrop University at the collegiate level, and he even worked there as assistant coach for nearly two years.
“My passion for coaching collegiate age kids began when I worked as the assistant tennis coach at Winthrop University,” said Eskridge.
He was able to fulfill his desire to be a college coach in the fall of 2008, after leaving his position as a tennis pro at I’ON to take on the job of being the Trojan head coach. While he loves many components of coaching, Eskridge’s favorite aspect of his job as tennis coach of the Trojans are the young adults that he works with on a daily basis.
“I not only help them improve their tennis game, but I also challenge them both on and off the court to strive to be the best person they can,” said Eskridge.
Grace Weaver, who chose to transfer to AU because of the tennis program's distinguished history and Christ centered focus, enjoys having Eskridge as a coach because of his care for the team. She particularly likes how he takes interest in their personal wellbeing in addition to strengthening their tennis skills.
“Coach Eskridge does everything he can to develop us into the best tennis players we can be, but before that, he focuses on us and cares about us as a person,” said Weaver.
Eskridge’s coaching style has been deemed “player-focused” by Weaver. Valentina Borda is a senior Trojan tennis champion, from Lima, Peru, who has played under Eskridge for four years. In comparison to Weaver, she calls Eskridge’s coaching style both “authoritarian” and “analytical.”
“His authoritative side comes out during competitions, as he often directs how we should play. The analytical part is more present during practice, where we work on various strategies, understanding what to do in each situation and why,” said Borda.
Patrick Cronin, an American player in both the men's singles and doubles lineup, has also spent four years under Eskridge. Eskridge has helped Cronin’s tennis game by working with him individually and with the men’s team, as a whole. Tennis at the collegiate level is very different from any other level of tennis, and Eskridge has helped Cronin adapt to college level tennis through a variety of different tips and tricks.
“Coach Eskridge has helped me improve my game by teaching me the strategy of college tennis. How to handle my energy, handling my body with eating and drinking the right things. He has also improved my skill set, especially on the doubles court,” said Cronin.
Eskridge said he strives to create a family-like atmosphere for both the men’s and women’s teams. Each year he hosts team dinners and events for the players to connect better with each other off the court. Both Weaver, Borda, and Cronin agree that the team has become like a family to them.
“It is important to make sure my players feel loved and welcomed. I desire for the tennis programs to be like family. In order to do this, I invite them to my home to provide a family-like feel for my teams. Some of them are millions of miles away from home, and it is important for them to have people to lean on during the ups and downs of life,” said Eskridge.
Since Borda’s home is hundreds of miles away, having people that feel like family is extremely comforting. Borda enjoys spending time with her teammates, and she relishes the feeling of having both supportive coaches and team members.
“My favorite part of being on the tennis team is having a family away from home. To me, the team is like my second family, I know I can count on each of my teammates and coaches for anything, both the good and the bad and they will always be there for me,” Borda said.
Unlike most college coaches, Eskridge seeks personal relationships with his players. This is what makes Eskridge different. This is why Eskridge coaches. Seeking relationships with the members of his team, striving for closeness with them, and encouraging them to be their best self is indeed Eskridge’s goal as a coach.
“I want to help each player that I coach both personally and professionally. As players come and go, I strive to have meaningful relationships with each of them and cheer them on through their college years and beyond,” said Eskridge.
Eskridge believes that encouraging team bonding and fostering relationships with his players sets up the team for success. This belief appears to be true since Eskridge has won almost 400 matches in his coaching career as a Trojan. In addition, his prestigious record draws top junior tennis players from around the world.
“Everything we do is to accomplish a shared goal of being the most successful person we can be, on and off the court,” said Cronin.
Cronin understands that his coach expects the best from players both on and off the court and this can be seen academic wise on both teams. Academically, the tennis program has been known for maintaining a high cumulative GPA. Eskridge understands that his players are also at Anderson University to receive a degree. He prioritizes their education, and he challenges them to do their best in the classroom.
“We have won the Dr. Shirley Jacks Academic for Excellence Award a total of 13 times with the women’s team, and the men’s team was the first men’s program in Anderson University Athletic Department history to ever win the award,” said Eskridge. “I am proud to say that the Trojan tennis team performs well on the court and in the books.”
In his 16 years of coaching, Eskridge has won 207 men’s conference games and 191 women’s conferences games. He acknowledges the success of his coaching career, but he does not believe that the Trojan tennis program has plateaued success wise.
“I am proud of my team, but we can always get better and do better. I want to push them to their limit to activate their full potential. I want to see this program become even greater. I will walk alongside my players every step of the way to encourage and train them to be the best they can possibly be,” said Eskridge.
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