Former KU Tennis Coach, Kilmeny Waterman Connor, Inducted into Regional Tennis Hall of Fame
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – Former Kansas tennis coach, Kilmeny Waterman Connor, was inducted into the 2019 United States Tennis Association Missouri Valley Hall of Fame Class Saturday. The Hall of Fame recognizes individuals who have served the game of tennis through their play, dedication to volunteerism and their passion for improving the game.
Connor coached at the University of Kansas for three seasons, garnering an impressive tenure by leading the Jayhawks to a 35-30 record in dual matches and appearing in the postseason each year. In 2002, Connor was named the Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year and the ITA Central Coach of the Year.
A former player herself on the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour, Waterman took over the Kansas program after founding the women’s tennis team at the University of Wyoming, where she developed the UW program during its first four seasons of existence, from 1996-99.
Before taking the helm at UW, Connor served as Kansas’ assistant coach from 1992-95. During that time, the KU program reached as high as No. 7 in the national rankings in 1994. That same team went on to win the Central Region title and advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championships, going 25-4 on the season. In the four years that Connor was an assistant at KU, the Jayhawks went 80-29 in dual matches and won the Big 8 (currently known as Big 12) title every year.
Connor has excelled in the tennis world since her early years as a player, and still today as a teacher, coach, and organizer of tennis. A top-ranked junior player winning the 1980 Missouri State High School Girls Singles Championship, she went on to play at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas and for three years on the Women’s Professional Tennis Circuit.
Craig Sandvig of University City, Mo., and Pam Sloan of Stockton, California, formerly of Kansas City, Mo also joined Connor in the USTA Missouri Valley Hall of Fame Class. The three new members of the USTA Missouri Valley Hall of Fame were inducted Saturday, December 7 during the USTA Missouri Valley Annual Conference and Awards luncheon at the Olathe Conference Center in Olathe, Kan.
