University of Mary Washington Athletic Hall of Famer Conor Smith '03 has led Bowdoin College to the 2016 NCAA Division III men's tennis championship. Smith, in his fifth season as head coach, led the Polar Bears past Middlebury, 5-0, in the championship match, for the first national championship in program history.
Smith led Bowdoin to a 20-3 record this season, including a thrilling quarterfinal win over Johns Hopkins, 5-4, and a semifinal win over #1 ranked and previously undefeated Emory University on Tuesday.
Smith was previously the head coach for four years at Bridgewater (Va.), and was twice named the Old Dominion Athletic Conference men's tennis coach of the year, netting the honor most recently in 2011 as the Eagles went 14-7 overall. He also claimed the honor in 2009 after leading Bridgewater to a third-place finish in the ODAC - the team's highest conference finish in 30 years. Under Smith's direction, the squad set program records for single-season wins in each of the past two seasons.
Smith played four years of tennis at the University of Mary Washington and was a two-time All-American. Smith was the Capital Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year in 2000 and in 2001 he was individually ranked No. 30 in Division III. Smith earned his first All-American honor as a junior in 2002 and, as a senior captain, was named an All-American for the second time. He was ranked No. 15 in the nation and won the ITA Senior Regional Player of the Year.
Smith began his coaching career in September, 2003 as the men's assistant coach at Mary Washington, a position he held until May, 2005. Later in 2005, he accepted a position as women's assistant coach at Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland. Smith received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history at Mary Washington and in 2007 he received his Masters degree in history at Washington College.