Peter Burling returns for his 30th season as the head men’s tennis coach in 2019-20. Since his arrival in Granville in 1991, Burling has helped the Big Red tennis programs rise among the elite programs in Division III Tennis.
A two-time national Coach of the Year and 11-time North Coast Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, Burling has compiled a record of 742-333 as the head coach of the men’s and women’s teams at Denison.
As the coach of the men’s team since 1991, Burling and the Big Red have posted a record of 429-200 that has included seven NCAC Championships and eight NCAA Tournament appearances. Six players have been named the conference’s Player of the Year and Burling has won NCAC Men’s Coach of the Year on seven occasions. Eleven players, most recently Tom Cawood in 2012, have earned All-America honors under Burling.
From 2000 until 2017, Burling led the women's tennis program to 12 NCAA Tournament appearances and six NCAA Quarterfinal appearances. In 2008, Burling and the Big Red broke through with an appearance in the NCAA Semifinals that resulted in a third-place national finish. The team posted a 22-4 record that season. In addition, after the conclusion of the team championship, the duo of Marta Drane and Kristin Cobb finished as the national runner-up in the NCAA Division III Doubles Championship. In 2004, Burling received the ITA National Coach of the Year award and the following season the USPTA honored Burling as its National Coach of the Year. Two players, Meridith Sulser in 2005 and Cobb in 2011, were honored by the ITA with its prestigious Arthur Ashe Jr. Sportsmanship and Leadership Award. In 2009, Meghan Damico received the ITA Senior Player of the Year award.
At the conference level, the women’s program has won 11 NCAC championships while producing five conference Players of the Year and 22 All-Americans.
A native of Orleans, Mass., Burling has been a USPTA Level I Professional for nearly 40 years and currently resides in Granville with his wife Patricia. He has two sons, Scott and Colin.
