Raquel Atawo

Raquel Atawo, architect of one of the latest resurgences in college tennis, was named the 10th Purdue women’s tennis head coach in program history, executive vice president and director of intercollegiate athletics Mike Bobinski announced on May 19, 2025.   “On behalf of our athletics department and Purdue University, I’m excited to announce Raquel Atawo as the new head coach of Purdue Women’s Tennis,” said Bobinski. “In her time as head coach at Washington State, Raquel brought impressive competitive results, positivity and energy to the program, winning 20 matches for just the second time in school history this past season and coaching the program’s first-ever All-American. We look forward to Raquel bringing her blueprint for success to West Lafayette and to the Big Ten Conference. Her background as an exceptional collegiate and professional tennis player will be of great value in guiding our Boilermakers toward similar accomplishments. Please join me in welcoming Coach Atawo, her husband Toby, and son Dominic to Purdue and the Greater Lafayette community.”   Atawo joins the Boilermakers from Pullman, Washington, where she led the Washington State Cougars for the last four seasons. During her time with the Cougars, she guided the team to one of the best seasons in program history, an NIT championship title, 10 all-conference honors, including a Pac-12 Player of the Year and a pair of Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) regional selections.   “It is a great honor to be the next head coach of women’s tennis at Purdue University,” said Atawo. “Words can’t express my gratitude for this honor, and I will continue to strive for excellence within this program. I am incredibly grateful to athletic director Mike Bobinski, associate athletics director Peyton Stovall, and men’s tennis head coach Geoff Young for their help throughout this process. It’s clear how much pride Purdue takes in its athletics programs, and the university’s strong academic standards make this the perfect place for me and my family. I look forward to getting to West Lafayette and starting this new journey.”   This past season alone, Atawo directed Washington State to five all-conference honors, including two first team West Coast Conference singles and doubles honors and three honorable mentions. The season, which included the program’s first undefeated home showing (11-0), culminated in the NIT Championship title and a 20-8 overall record – the second-most wins produced in a single season by the Cougars. The 20 victories from Washington State’s latest campaign were an impressive improvement from 10 wins in 2023-24 and seven wins in 2022-23.   A program builder, Atawo provided tutelage to Washington State’s first All-American and Pac-12 Player of the Year in Michaela Bayerlova, who went on to an NCAA quarterfinalist finish and No. 19 national ranking, the second-highest individual ranking for a Cougar in program history. Additionally, Atawo trained the ITA Northwest Regional Rookie of the Year Eva Alvarez to back-to-back Pac-12 honors, guided Ly Nguyen to the ITA’s Most Improved Senior regional honor and a doubles team top-51 national ranking.   Prior to Washington State, Atawo served as an assistant coach at Auburn from 2020-21, during which time she was named ITA Southern Region Assistant Coach of the Year, helping the team ascend 20 spots in the national rankings to No. 22. During her stint, Atawo coached All-American Selin Ovunc, who advanced to the NCAA tournament’s round of 16 in addition to an SEC newcomer honoree and a doubles team that ranked No. 23 in the nation.   As a two-time Wimbledon doubles semifinalist and an Australian Open doubles semifinalist, Atawo had an illustrious professional career that also included a World Team Tennis Most Valuable Player in 2019 and 18 WTA doubles titles. She reached No. 10 in the world rankings for doubles and No. 162 for singles, amassing two International Tennis Federation (ITF) singles titles and 16 doubles titles during her run.   Atawo, previously known as Kops-Jones, attended the University of California – Berkeley from 2000-04, where her career began with earning Pac-10 Freshman of the Year and built to lofty status as a five-time All-American in both singles and doubles, the 2004 ITA Senior Player of the Year and Pac-10 Player of the Year, and a nearly year-long No. 1 national singles ranking.   Not only was Atawo the first player from Cal to win a Pac-10 singles championship, but she went on to become the first African-American female to win a national singles championship at the Division I level after capturing the 2003 ITA/Riviera All-American Championship. In doubles, she was crowned 2003 NCAA doubles champion alongside partner Christina Fusano. Together, they also hoisted two Pac-10 doubles championship trophies (2002 and 2003).   Atawo graduated from Cal in 2004 with a Bachelor of Arts in American Studies. Her husband Toby, a former Cal track & field athlete, and their son Dominic will join her in West Lafayette. The Atawo family will grow in the heartland, with their second child expected in the coming months.