Larry Schuh is set to begin his 10th season as the men's tennis coach at Grace College.
Schuh has transformed Grace’s men’s tennis program into a powerhouse in the Crossroads League during his tenure.
A two-time CL Coach of the Year (2009, 2013), Schuh has led the Lancers to back-to-back regular-season league championships in 2012 and 2013. Grace had not experienced a league title in 23 years before the 2012 championship season. In 2013 the Lancers were ranked as high as No. 7 in the NCCAA national poll.
Prior to Schuh’s arrival, the Lancers had not earned a league victory in four years. But under Schuh’s guidance, the Lancers advanced to back-to-back league tournament championship matches in 2012 and 2013.
In 2009 Schuh was named the Crossroads League Coach of the Year for Grace's incredible turnaround. After finishing last in the CL in 2008, the Lancers finished 2009 at 6-5 (4-3 CL) and were one win away from a third-place finish. Schuh brought in two freshmen (Michael Blevins, Nikola Todorovic) who advanced to the league singles championship match.
"It is an ongoing privilege to continue to run a program that has a rich, winning history,” said coach Schuh. "Grace College is a wonderful place to grow as an athlete, but more importantly, to grow more and more into the image of Jesus Christ. Our ultimate goal is spiritual in nature, but we also have a view toward getting Grace back to the NAIA national tennis tournament.”
Schuh is a 1991 Southeast Missouri State graduate with a degree in education who also graduated from the Grace College Seminary in 1999 with a masters in divinity.
Schuh has over a decade's worth of experience coaching the boys' and girls' tennis teams at Whitko High School. Throughout that time, both the boys and girls teams have won a conference championship. His girls’ team in 2005 had an 11-win season, which tied a record for wins in a season at Whitko.
Schuh has been a public school teacher for 16 years, a pastor at Manchester Bible Church for 13 years, and has been running tennis camps over the summer for the Whitko schools for 15 years. He has also been a sponsor of the Whitko Spanish Club for 14 years. Schuh's hobbies and interests include playing golf and volleyball.
Larry has three children: Marina, Josh and Carter.
GRACE MEN'S TENNIS PHILOSOPHY
