Olga Elkin - Women's Tennis Coach - Murray State University Athletics

Olga Elkin

Title:
Head Coach
Email:
oelkin@murraystate.edu
Phone:
(270) 809-5407

Olga Elkin has spent two years as the head coach of women's tennis at Murray State.

In her first season in charge of the Racers, Elkin led the Racers to their best OVC record (8-2) since the 2006-07 season (9-1), and a No. 3 seed in the OVC Championship Tournament. The Racers also put three student-athletes on the All-Conference team: Ashley Canty - First Team, Carla Suga, Megan Blue - Second Team.

Elkin topped her first year by winning the OVC regular season and conference championships. The Racers finished 16-6 overall and 9-1 in the OVC. Her 2014 campaign included a trip to the NCAA tournament, just the fifth in team history. The conference championships marked the first at MSU since 2007. The Racers again put three student athletes on the All-Conference team: Andrea Eskauriatza - First Team, Megan Blue, Eleonore Tchakarova - Second Team, giving Elkin six All-OVC team members in two years.

Prior to MSU, Elkin spent a short period of time in the 2010-11 season as interim head coach at Kennesaw State and served as graduate assistant that year. She was also a graduate assistant in the 2011-12 season. This two-year period was a time of tremendous improvement at Kennesaw State. Not only did she help the Owls develop their first nationally ranked student athlete and the Atlantic Sun Conference Freshman of the Year (Virginie Stein), but in 2010-11, the Owls enjoyed their best season in program history. The Owls set records in both overall wins (18) and conference wins (seven). In Elkin's two years at Kennesaw State, the Owls had seven All-Atlantic Sun honorees.

“I’m honored and blessed to have the opportunity that I’ve been given at Murray State,” Elkin said. “I’m glad to be joining the Murray State family.”

“We’re extremely excited to have Olga join our staff,” MSU Senior Women Administrator and Head Women’s Golf Coach Velvet Milkman said. “She is an up and coming coach and we feel very fortunate that she has chosen to be a Racer. Olga has a tremendous passion to coach and make a difference in the lives of student athletes both on and off the court.”

“I’m really excited that Olga has agreed to become our new women’s tennis coach,” MSU Athletics Director Allen Ward said. “She is well prepared after having played at the highest level and brings an enthusiasm and desire to win that our student athletes will fully embrace. It’s a really good day for our women’s tennis program.”

Elkin started her career as a student athlete at Wichita State (2006-08) where she was a Missouri Valley Conference singles champion as she led her team at WSU to a No. 16 national ranking. Elkin and the Shockers claimed the Missouri Valley Conference Championships in 2007.

Elkin finished her collegiate career at West Virginia (2008-10), playing at No. 1 singles and earned a degree in sport management. She was also named to the Big East Academic All-Star Team twice.

Elkin earned a master’s degree in sports administration from Georgia State in 2012. She also coached at the Nebraska Tennis Academy in Lincoln, Neb., in the summers of 2007-09 and was the Director of Tennis at Camp Micah in Bridgeton, Maine for three summers.

“I’m honored to come to a tradition-rich tennis program like Murray State,” Elkin said. “I’d like to thank Mr. Ward and the committee for this opportunity. I’m grateful for Jeff Kutac who prepared me to be a head coach while I was at Kennesaw State.”