Staten Island, NY – Each February, colleges, universities, schools, and leagues around the nation celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day, an event emphasizing the importance of females in athletics.

Coach Lynn Kiro, who heads up the Seahawk Women's Tennis Program, is in her second season at Wagner. In addition to her day-to-day responsibilities as head coach, she is also pursuing her Master's degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing. 

Prior to the pandemic canceling the remaining portion of the 2019-20 season, the Seahawks were 4-5 overall and 2-0 in Northeast Conference (NEC) play. The Seahawks wasted no time in getting Kiro her first career win, besting local rival, Monmouth, 6-1 back on September 23, 2019.

Coach Kiro was born in Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa to Emmanuel and Josiane Kiro. She has one brother, Ike, who played collegiately at the District of Columbia and New Jersey Tech. 

In 2012, she earned a spot on the South African Fed Cup squad in Cairo, Egypt. She also competed for her home country on the Junior Fed Cup team in 2011. For her young career, she won five ITF singles titles and a pair of ITF double titles. 

In 2013, she enrolled at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, TX. As a member of the Red Raiders women's tennis team, Kiro helped guide the team to a blistering 90-27 overall record during her four seasons.

Individually, Kiro compiled a 64-17 singles record while going an impressive 14-1 in Big 12 matches. After her freshman campaign, she was named First Team All-Big 12 singles after boasting a 29-6 overall record and 21-3 mark in dual matches. In league-play, she went 9-0. 

The following season, Kiro went 24-9. She was the first Lady Raider in program history to win four straight matches at the Riviera/ITA All-American Championship. She reached a career-high ranking of No. 35, nationally. 

In her final two years at Texas Tech, she went 11-2 overall and combined for 23 doubles wins, eight of which came out of the No. 3 spot. 

During her junior campaign, she, along with teammate, Alex Valenstein, went on to win the first-ever ITA Regionals doubles title at Texas Tech. This earned the duo a spot at the National Indoors, which was held at the USTA Billie Jean King Tennis Center in Flushing, NY. She wrapped up her career with a fourth straight appearance on the Academic All-Big 12 Team. 

Director of Media Relations, Brian Morales, recently spoke with Lynn Kiro, head coach of the Wagner women's tennis program. In their interview, Kiro discusses her journey from Cape Town, South Africa to Lubbock, Texas, and ultimately how she found her way to Grymes Hill. The two also talked about how Kiro has morphed into a role model.

BM: Coach Kiro! It has been a while. Hope all is well with you. Thank you so much for speaking with me and sharing your story for National Girls and Women in Sports Day. You are currently in your second year as head coach of the Wagner women's tennis program, how did this journey start out for you, Coach? 
 
LK: All is well! I absolutely appreciate the opportunity to discuss my journey. So, to start from the beginning. I think I was about seven years old when I first picked up a tennis racket and obviously, at that age, I was more interested in my Barbies and Bratz dolls and whatever else. I was way more focused on that. My brother had actually started playing tennis, so my dad took me to the courts with them. 
 
I was reluctant at first because I would have rather been playing with dolls. As soon as my dad put the racket in my hand, it was almost a given. He was like 'wow, she is pretty good.' My dad had been playing socially for a while. One afternoon, he was serving to me and I was able to return and he was like 'okay, we might be on to something here.' 
 
From then on, I started playing in the local 10 and under squads and it kind of rolled along from there. I started taking tennis more seriously, started playing in weekly tournaments, and was just in full swing. 
 
Once my dad thought I was ready, I started climbing through the rankings, was ranked first in the under-12's and under-14s, and won the National U-14 title.
 
I got invited to the ITF Training Center in Pretoria, South Africa, which was about a two to two-and-a-half-hour plane flight from Cape Town. I was accepted into the program at 14 and they provided all the schooling, which we did online, traveling, and meals. I was there throughout high school.
 
While there, I was able to go through the whole process of talking to coaches. Sidenote, I didn't think I was going to go to college at the time. I was, actually, planning on turning professional. But, obviously, my parents didn't have the means, so they said "well, we can use this as a route for you to get on the tour." 
 
Fast-forwarding, I signed with Texas Tech. Played there for four years, graduated in five. After graduating, I worked at a club in Austin where I was a high-performance tennis coach. There, I would work with the players and travel with them. 
 
Once my VISA was done, I went back to South Africa where I played a little beach tennis (smiling) while I was there. During this time, I was like, "okay, now, I have to start looking at grad school." I started applying for GA positions.
 
During my search, the Wagner position came across my screen. I applied, I got the job and, well, here I am!
 
 
BM: Just charting it on a map… South Africa to Lubbock, back to South Africa, and then to Staten Island, NY. Definitely a frequent flyer… Talk to me about your first time stepping onto the Texas Tech University campus… It's not only a new city, a new state, but it is a new culture… 
 
LK: The whole recruiting process was obviously a little different since I was an international student. I didn't know that much at the time. I was talking to a couple of schools… I was interested in Texas Tech and Ohio State. In speaking with my house mother, she was like "you don't want to go to Ohio… It's so cold… I was like, okay. Bye-bye, Ohio State, we are going to Texas Tech! I wouldn't take any visits or anything like that, I just signed. Lucky for me, because, it was a bit of a gamble…signing with a school without actually visiting the campus. 
 
I signed, officially, in the fall and took a visit in the spring. When I flew into Lubbock, I was like, oh my God! What am I getting myself into? From the plane, all I can see was just pastures and farms and just, brown! I just flew out of Cape Town, which is city-like, urban, vibrant, and now adjusting to this new city that is just, brown. I was saying, what is this? 
 
I get there and it was completely the opposite of what I thought. The hospitality, everyone was so welcoming and that is the thing I love about Texas, is how nice the people are! That is what really made the transition so easy for me. I have been living away from home, so I was used to that, but, the actual place, Lubbock, is a small college town and the people made it great. 
 
I fell in love with the town, as soon as I got there. People say 'Lubbock is in the middle of nowhere,' and, yes, it is, but I don't know, it just grows on you. You fall in love with the school, the environment, the campus, which is so pretty. I haven't seen many campuses like Texas Tech. I know, it might sound bias (chuckles). I don't regret that decision at all. 

 
 
BM: So, you fall in love with this college, in the middle-of-nowhere. You know, me, growing up in Brooklyn, I know pretty much all the colleges around here, so getting outside of New York, it is the middle-of-nowhere to me. Rewinding a bit, to your freshman year, what were you anticipating being a part of the Texas Tech women's tennis team? 
 
LK: Going into it, I honestly didn't know what to expect because the way my whole juniors career was structured was so different from college sports. In a junior tournament, I would be used to playing five matches in a week, back-to-back, and that would get you to the end of the tournament and the title (smiles again) … Going into college tennis, you play only one match a day. I was like, wow, that's it? 
 
For me at the beginning, I was there to compete. As long as you put me on a tennis court, I am going to get the job done. It was hard though. Just from a goal-setting perspective. I didn't really know what to set for my goals. 
 
I knew what I wanted to accomplish, but, in a team-sense, when the coach tells you to write down goals, I didn't know what a conference was, a conference championship was, or what the Sweet 16 was. I didn't know anything of the sort. That was all really foreign to me and took some time to get used to. After my first year, I sort of started grasping the concept of these team-orientated goals. 

 
 
BM: Looking forward to your junior and senior years, now. You are more seasoned and experienced. Your coach is now bringing in more players. Did your coaches think of you as a leader at this point? Or, did you or the coaches believed you were just part of the team? 
 
LK: Um, no… They definitely looked at me as a leader! I came in with a class of four and by my junior year, I was the only one left in that class. I was now the upperclassman. 

I was definitely a leader then and my coaches looked to me to fill that leadership role with the rest of the girls. It was a tough position. Obviously, you are trying to lead but also trying to be closer with your teammates, who are your friends. It was a role that I embraced.

BM: With you embracing your new role as a leader, moving forward, you are applying to be a graduate assistant, which now turns into the head coach here at Wagner. How has that transformation morphed you into the career that you are currently in?
 
LK: With this Wagner GA position, in my opinion, the graduate assistant position that Wagner has is the best in the country. Why I say that, is because you are getting your housing, meals covered and gaining experience. The campus is small and quaint. Everything is so accessible. For me, really, Wagner is able to kind of put you in a position that you maybe wouldn't be in at this point in your life otherwise. 
 
I probably wouldn't have been a head coach right now. But I am able to be a GA and a head coach, which is pretty great. People don't really see GA on my resume, they see Head Women's Tennis Coach.
 
I think what is so great about this position is that I was thrown into it. I had an idea of what to expect, but it is still a tough role to fill. I think I have grown as a person here, too, since I started. I have had to do things I don't think I would have had to do at this point in my life. 
 
This role has been great and for whatever I want to do afterward, I am definitely going to be ready. I have had all the experience playing college sports, but now this role (coaching), being on the other side has prepared me for life.
 
 
BM: In preparing for your life, how has that morphed you into a role model for a younger generation of female athletes?
 
LK: The biggest thing for me is having goals and knowing what you want to do. I was at the point as well, when I went back to South Africa, I wasn't sure that I wanted to come back (stateside) and do the whole graduate school route. I was honestly set on playing beach tennis at some point because I missed competing. That was my biggest thing. I had a glimpse of the competition and I just, really, really missed it. 
 
I had a wake-up call from my father. He said, 'no, you are going to New York. You are going to be a GA.' So, yeah, knowing that it is possible to do it. 
 
Playing the sport (tennis) has enabled me to get all of my schooling paid for. That is another big thing, too. A lot of people are like "sports, ugh, whatever." They don't know the possibilities it presents, that graduate assistant positions are open.
 
Having a goal and knowing what you want to do, that is the most important thing, especially for those international students.
 
BM: You touched upon this earlier. You are now in this position of leadership at Wagner. What is one piece of advice, if you were to go back to speak with young Lynn, and for that matter young women, that you would tell them? 
 
LK: Don't ever sell yourself short! Women are way more capable of doing things than we think we are. Another piece of advice, relating to sports and being in this environment, at the end of the day (talking more when I was competing), it is just a sport. 
 
We can sometimes get so caught up in the gist of our sport. If there was one thing that I would say to younger Lynn... 'Lynn, it is just tennis! You are going to live tomorrow. Whatever the outcome is, you are going to carry on living. 
 
BM: 100 percent agree. I believe that is a strong message, especially words to hear on National Girls and Women in Sports Day. I think that is a perfect way of describing you, which, we are grateful at Wagner to have you working here. Anything else you would like to say before we sign off here? 
 
LK: Um…. Female and women empowerment. I am all about that. I love seeing it, especially in a college atmosphere and that is one of the things I am most proud of… Being able to be a HEAD women's tennis coach at a Division I school as a woman. You don't see it a lot, even in tennis today. I am definitely proud of that. 
 
As a female, obviously, we have more work to do. I think putting in more work than some of our male counterparts is something to remember. It is never too early to take on a leadership role. I know that sometimes people may be shy, especially in a college environment. If you're a freshman, don't hesitate to get involved and be open to accepting those leadership roles when they come around.
 
BM: I think that is a tremendous message, Coach. I personally thank you for all you do here at Wagner, for the women's tennis program, and for me, making my job enjoyable and fun. The success of the program has upped since your arrival and only see great things ahead. Thank you for the time! 
 
LK: Of course! Thank you for having me on for this! Go Wag!