Bio

In November 2017, Andrew Girard was named the Operations Manager for Intercollegiate Tennis at Carnegie Mellon University to go with his head coaching duties of the women's tennis team. With the move, Mike Belmonte was elevated to head men's tennis coach after serving as associate head men's and women's tennis coach since 2015.

"This is a historic time for our tennis programs. We have long been among the elite programs in the country in terms of tennis performance; now we join the top programs in the form of our commitment to two full-time head coaches," said Girard. "This staffing structure will allow us to focus our energy on one program, which we expect will eventually yield improved success in key areas essential to being a top program, such as recruiting and the development of our student-athletes as both tennis players and people."

Girard recorded a 218-144 mark as head coach of the men's program in 14 full seasons with three team matches played in the fall of 2017. His leadership built the program into a national power. In his first season, the team reached the NCAA postseason for the first time in school history, repeating the feat in his second season. The last 11 seasons have seen the men in the national rankings, with five more NCAA team appearances, including 2016. The team has finished in the top 20 nationally each of the past 11 seasons, with the 2016 team earning the program’s highest end-of-year ranking at number seven.

The seven trips to the NCAA Championship include reaching the NCAA Quarterfinals in 2010, when the team finished the year ranked eighth in the nation and saw Girard named the ITA/Wilson National Men’s Coach of the Year. The team has also competed at the ITA Division III National Team Indoor Championship five times, placing sixth in 2010, fourth in 2011,  2016, and 2017, and seventh in 2015.

In addition to the fourth-place finish at the ITA National Team Indoor Championship, the 2017 team defeated eight nationally ranked opponents and had two All-America honorees in freshman Michael Rozenvasser and sophomore Daniel Levine. Rozenvasser won the ITA Southeast Regional and placed fourth in the nation at the newly named ITA Oracle Cup.

The 2015-16 year challenged the 2013-14 year as the best in program history. Both teams reached a national ranking of five during the season and advanced to the regional final of the NCAA tournament. Likewise, Girard was named the ITA/Wilson Atlantic South Region Coach of the Year at the conclusion of each season. Abhishek Alla won the USTA/ITA National Small College Singles Championship in the fall of 2013 and closed his career in the semifinals of the NCAA Singles Championship.

The Tartans just missed a second-straight appearance in the NCAA tournament in 2015 as they were ranked 11th in the nation and finished fourth at the UAA Championships. Three athletes competed at the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships with Alla and Heaney-Secord finishing the year as All-Americans.

The 2012-13 team welcomed five new faces, began the year with a seven straight victories including three against Division I and II opponents, and finished fourth in the UAA which was represented by three teams in the NCAA Championship Tournament. First year player, Abhishek Alla, was named the ITA Atlantic South Rookie of the Year while sophomore Christian Heaney-Secord competed at the NCAA Singles Championship and was named the Atlantic South Player to Watch.

With a young squad in 2011-12, the team defeated five nationally ranked opponents and finished with a year-end national ranking of #19. Duke Miller and Will Duncan became the fourth doubles pair in the past five years to earn All-America distinction, as they finished ranked #1 in the Atlantic South region and #6 in the nation. The duo competed in the NCAA Doubles Championship, while Miller also competed in the NCAA Singles Championship.

Also the coach of the Carnegie Mellon women’s team, Girard has amassed a career victory total of 510. His teams have made the NCAA team tournament a combined 22 times. They have also competed in 17 ITA National Team Indoor Championships, with 12 top-four finishes. In regards to individual player honors, Girard has had the privilege of mentoring players that have been named All-America 70 times. During his tenure, players have qualified for the NCAA Singles Championship 30 times, and doubles teams have appeared in the NCAA Doubles Championship 15 times. Additionally, he has had players advance in singles (12 times) and doubles (11 times) to the ITA National Small College Championships, with 12 top-three finishes, including two ITA National Singles Championships. Girard has been named Atlantic South Coach of the Year six times, and in 2010 was named the ITA/Wilson National Men’s Coach of the Year.

Girard places tremendous value on academic success, and fittingly the teams have earned numerous academic honors over the last 18 seasons. The Carnegie Mellon teams have been named an ITA All-Academic Team 33 times and have had players named ITA Scholar Athletes 188 times.

Girard came to Carnegie Mellon from Northern Michigan University, where he served as an assistant for their nationally ranked women’s tennis team. While at NMU, the team qualified for the Division II National Championship and reached the round of 16. NMU was ranked as high as #24 in the country and #2 in the Midwest region.

In addition to collegiate coaching experience, Girard has had extensive work with junior tennis development. He was in charge of the junior tennis programs in Marquette, Michigan, for twelve summers. He also spent six years as a volunteer assistant coach for the Marquette Senior High School boys’ tennis team, and in each of those seasons the team won the Upper Peninsula state championship.

Girard played his collegiate tennis for Michigan Technological University. While at MTU, he was named to the all-conference team three times, and was named the team MVP for the 1999-2000 season, the year in which the team compiled the most victories in the program’s fifty year history. Girard is among the school’s all-time leaders in singles and doubles wins. A two-time Academic All-America selection, he finished with a 4.00 GPA and received a bachelor’s degree from MTU in biological sciences. Girard later returned and received an education degree, and spent a year at Marquette Senior High School as a teacher of both chemistry and AP chemistry.

In 2015, Girard graduated from Carnegie Mellon's Tepper School of Business with his Master's in Business Administration.