NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion women’s tennis’ head coach Dominic Manilla announced the hiring of associate head coach Ashleigh Antal on Monday.
“I’ve worked with and coached against Coach Antal for many seasons starting back when she was the head coach at App State,” said Manilla. “Her knowledge of the game, on-court presence and demeanor have always impressed me. We took our time during the interview process to make sure we not only identified the most talented coach, but the best fit and character for Old Dominion.”
“After getting to know Coach Antal over the past few months, I am confident we did just that. She is a driven, fearless leader that cares deeply for her athletes and is committed to building on our established championship culture,” added Manilla.
A native of Wilmington, N.C., Antal joins ODU after serving as the associate head coach at Clemson from 2023-2025, where she helped recruit the seventh best class in the nation and make the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2018.
Prior to joining the Tigers, Antal was the head coach at App. State from 2020-2023, bringing in the best recruiting class in App State history in 2021 and coaching multiple first team Sun Belt selections. She also was named the associate head coach at Long Beach State from 2018-2020 and led Beach Tennis to the 2019 Big West Title while securing the No. 8 ranked Mid-Major recruiting class.
Antal is a former Division I 2015 National Champion and All-American during her time as a player at Vanderbilt. In her collegiate career, she collected 204 singles and doubles wins, including 19 nationally ranked wins. Antal also posted her 100th career singles win in Vanderbilt’s national championship match against UCLA.
“I’m incredibly grateful and excited to be joining the Monarch tennis family! I’d like to thank coach Manilla and Bruce Stewart for this opportunity and for trusting me to help carry on the legacy of success built here at ODU,” said Antal.
“Coach Manilla has a proven track record of winning on a national stage while developing athletes to represent the Monarchs at the highest levels of professional tennis,” added Antal. “I am honored to have the chance to work alongside such a fantastic group of student athletes and to reach new heights together! I'm excited to start this new chapter and grateful for the journey that brought me here. Let’s get to work! Go Monarchs!”