By Mark Siquig
Already earning 13 Big West Tournament Championships and nine Big West Regular Season Championships, Long Beach State Women’s Tennis head coach Jenny Hilt-Costello achieved another milestone by picking up her 400th career win in charge on April 22.
Hilt-Costello started her coaching career at the Beach in 1995 as an assistant coach but was later named head coach in 1997. Since then, she has transformed LBSU into a successful program.
“It feels pretty good. It makes me reflect on a lot of years of hard work and teams that have come together and had successful seasons,” said Hilt-Costello. “It’s a nostalgic moment for me as well.”
She has also been named Big West Coach of the Year nine times as well.
Players under Hilt-Costello have confidence in her coaching because of the way she approaches practices and the matches. Her coaching experience is the thing that stands out to her players.
03/09/2023 - Long Beach, Calif: Hilt-Costello coaching one of her freshman players Doga Akyurek in a heated singles match versus Boston University. Photo credit: Mark Siquig
“Our coach is really experienced, she won a lot of Big West titles,” said junior Sarah Medik. “The way how we practice, the way how we play our matches and how she prepares us gives me a really good feeling for our Big West Conference.”
Junior Mathilde Tranberg highlights Hilt-Costello’s dedication to coaching the team and how she prepares them for the Big West Tournament coming up.
“Coach is very dedicated on her work and she comes in everyvday early to practice and very prepared to make us all better tennis players,” said Tranberg.
Tranberg’s singles match victory was the clincher for her coach’s 400th win. She was very happy for her coach and being the one to win it for LBSU.
“I was actually her 400th win so I am very happy about that and I said to her that I hope she remembers me,” said Tranberg. “But overall, I think she is very dedicated and she is a really inspiring coach and she really makes us the best version of ourselves.”
Hilt-Costello reflected on her time at the Beach, as she has been coaching the program for over 26 seasons. She is proud of being able to coach one team for so many seasons and has fallen in love with the Beach.
“I am thrilled that I can say that I am a coach that’s been at one school, and a school I love so much,” said “Hilt-Costello. “I love the area here, I love the university and I can’t imagine living anywhere else or coaching any other program so to have 400 at the same school is really for me quite exciting.”
Even after reaching this milestone, Hilt-Costello and her team are locked in for the Big West Tournament in San Diego. Their main goal all season was to learn and build from the week before.
“We are just trying to build on some of the things we learned from last weekend and for us that’s kind of been the goal all year and learn from the previous weekend and how can we get better,” said Hilt-Costello.
The LBSU women’s tennis team will be traveling to San Diego on Friday in hopes to win a Big West Tournament championship.
