New UCF director of tennis Bryan Koniecko didn’t have to look far in finding a new men’s coach, promoting Lloyd Bruce-Burgess from the women’s program to take over for John Roddick, who resigned last week.
Bruce-Burgess spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach under Koniecko, helping guide the Knights to back-to-back appearances in the NCAA National Championships in 2022-23.
“Lloyd has been a valuable member of our staff for the last two years, and his passion for excellence is unparalleled,” Koniecko said in a statement Tuesday. “He has an impressive tennis background, with experience in coaching, playing, and recruiting. Lloyd is someone who genuinely cares for his players and will work tirelessly to build a championship team at UCF for years to come.”
“I am honored and delighted to accept the position of head men’s tennis coach,” Bruce-Burgess said. “I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Bryan, (deputy athletics director) Abby (Wilson), and Terry (Mohajir) for trusting me with this opportunity.”
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In the seven seasons under Roddick, UCF was 93-63 overall, advancing to three NCAA tournament appearances (2017, ’19, ’21), but the Knights finished with losing records in the past two seasons.
Bruce-Burgess previously worked as an assistant men’s coach at Iowa for two seasons and served as an assistant coach at USF in 2019. Before that, he served as director of tennis for Genesis Health Clubs from 2013-19. He also worked as a part-time volunteer assistant coach at Wichita State after serving as the women’s coach at Fresno Pacific.
A two-time JUCO All-American at Cowley College (Kansas), Bruce-Burgess was ranked No. 3 and 2 by the NJCCA in singles and doubles. A native of England, he also coached professional tennis, working with Johnanna Konta and Renata Zarazua on the Women’s Tennis Association tour.
Email Matt Murschel at mmurschel@orlandosentinel.com or follow him on Twitter at @osmattmurschel.