University of South Alabama Women's Tennis

Keyser is a veteran of Jaguar mens and womens tennis, having served as a player and assistant coach, while the 2015-16 campaign will mark Keysers 14th season at the helm of the USA womens tennis program. In his 13 seasons in charge he has the most wins in school history and has led the Jaguars to four NCAA Tournament appearances and two Sun Belt Conference titles. Keyser currently holds a 189-101 overall record and is the longest-tenured coach in program history. Keyser has had a player or doubles pairing named to the All-Sun Belt team 25 times, and in 2003 Viktoria Stoklasova was tabbed an ITA All-American. His teams finished the season ranked in the Intercollegiate Tennis Associations top 65 seven straight times from 2003-09, including a final position of No. 16 in 2003. Keyser took over a team in 2002-03 that had won 10 straight league championships and promptly guided the team to its 11th SBC title with a 21-5 record. The Jags made their eighth consecutive NCAA appearance and won their first-round match with No. 73 Marshall 4-2 before bowing out to No. 10 William & Mary. The following year the team advanced to the Sun Belt finals and earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament, where the Jaguars fell to Miami (Fla.). The 2005 campaign saw USA post a 19-7 markwith two winning streaks of six matches or longerand another trip to the NCAA Tournament. The Jags knocked off in-state rival Alabama, ranked 39th in the nation, but succumbed to host and fourth-ranked Vanderbilt. Keyser paced South Alabama to double-digit win totals in each of the next four seasons, including records of 19-5 in 2008 and 14-4 in 2009. His 2008 squad started the season with 11 straight wins en route to a third-place finish at the Sun Belt Championships, and the 2009 Jaguars also put together an 11-match streak that was snapped in the Sun Belt Championships by eventual champion Florida International. Faced with rebuilding a shorthanded roster, the Jaguars dropped to a 2-13 record in 2010, his first losing season as a head coach. He rebounded from a 3-13 ledger in 2011 to post one of the biggest turnarounds in the country, leading the Jaguars to a 14-6 mark. The win total almost tripled the five victories in the previous two seasons combined and included a nine-match win streak. A 5-2 win over Austin Peay on March 8, 2011 gave Keyser his 128th career victory, surpassing Scott Novak for the top spot in school history. He overhauled the roster to bring in five new players that collectively recorded a 59-15 singles record (79.7%) and 54-26 doubles mark (67.5%) in the spring. Alabama natives Mary Angela Martin and Emily Newton anchored the bottom of the lineup with a combined 34-1 singles record, including an 18-0 slate by Newton, the best single-season mark in school history. The following season Keyser led the Jaguars to their most wins in five years in 2013 with a 16-10 record and their first appearance in the Sun Belt semifinals since 2009. The team also had their first All-Sun Belt honorees since 09 with Newton earning a second-team nod in both singles and doubles with partner Michaela Meszarosova. His 2014 squad reached the finals of the Sun Belt championships for the first time since 2007, and posted a 16-3 record, the second-best mark by percentage since 1980, and third-best in the programs recorded history. Laura Valkova was named First Team All-Sun Belt in singles after a perfect 16-0 spring season at the top three spots in the lineup. She also received second team honors in doubles, pairing up with fellow freshman Monica Mitta for a 14-0 mark at No. 2 doubles. Emily Newton and Michaela Meszarosova also garnered second team all-league recognition. The Jaguars returned to the top of the Sun Belt in 2015 with a 21-3 record. The team won its first 18 matches of the year a new school record to start a season and tying the record for any win streak and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005, falling 4-0 to No. 21 Clemson in Tuscaloosa. Ten of those first 18 wins came via shutout, including five to close out the streak, and the team defeated a ranked opponent No. 47 Tulane for the first time since 2009. South Alabama went 9-0 against Sun Belt competition, getting the final three to clinch the programs first SBC title since 2003. He was voted the leagues coach of the year for the first time at the conclusion of the tournament. Keyser guided the program to its initial final ITA ranking since 2008-09 at No. 74 and his doubles team of Emily Newton and Laura Valkova finished No. 88. Newton and Valkova earned First Team All-Sun Belt honors in doubles, and second and first team in singles, respectively. Monica Mitta joined Valkova on the first team. On three occasions, Keyser has mentored a singles player to an end-of-season national ranking. Stoklasova was ranked 33rd in her All-America season in 2003 while Adrianna Solarova finished No. 56 and No. 55 in 2006 and 2007, respectively. Stoklasova advanced to the round of 16 in the NCAA Individual Championships. Keyser was named head womens tennis coach on July 31, 2002, after spending three seasons with the mens tennis program as an assistant coach. A three-year letterwinner on the South Alabama tennis team from 1994-97, Keyser was a member of three Sun Belt Championship teams and helped them advance to the NCAA Tournament each year. In 1995, the team reached the national quarterfinals at the NCAA Team Championships, the highest finish in school history. His final records at South Alabama included a singles mark of 46-14 and a doubles record of 56-10. He was named All-Sun Belt Conference in doubles in 1995 with Myles Wakefield and in 1996 with Johannes Saayman. Keyser was ranked in the top five in singles and doubles in the South African juniors for age 12-18 and was a member of the South African High School tennis team in 1992 and 1993.  

Pretoria, South Africa native Dr. Jaco Keyser enters his 24th season as head coach of the University of South Alabama women’s tennis program, having established himself as the winningest coach in program history. Over 23 seasons, Keyser has compiled a 378-153 overall record while leading the Jaguars to six NCAA Tournament appearances and four Sun Belt Conference championships.   Under Keyser’s leadership, South Alabama has remained a consistent contender in the Sun Belt Conference. The Jaguars have posted three consecutive strong seasons, including records of 18-6 in 2023, 16-5 in 2024, and 14-6 in 2025, with multiple appearances in the conference tournament quarterfinals and semifinals. His teams have continued to produce all-conference performers, highlighted by Elysia Pool’s selection as the 2023 Sun Belt Co-Newcomer of the Year. The 2022 season marked one of the most successful campaigns of Keyser’s tenure. South Alabama went 22-5 overall and 10-1 in conference play, capturing both the Sun Belt regular-season and tournament titles while earning a berth in the NCAA Tournament. Nikola Kohoutova was named Sun Belt Player of the Year, leading a group that earned multiple all-conference honors. Since taking over the program in 2002, Keyser has consistently guided the Jaguars to success at both the conference and national levels. His teams have earned All-Sun Belt recognition in 17 seasons, and he has coached an ITA All-American (Viktoria Stoklasova, 2003). South Alabama also achieved national prominence early in his tenure, finishing ranked in the ITA top 65 for seven consecutive seasons from 2003-09, including a program-best No. 16 ranking in 2003. Keyser made an immediate impact in his first season, leading the Jaguars to a Sun Belt Conference title and an NCAA Tournament appearance. Throughout his tenure, he has produced multiple 20-win seasons and guided the program to sustained success, including a landmark 2015 campaign. That season, the Jaguars opened with a school-record 18-match winning streak, captured the Sun Belt title, advanced to the NCAA Tournament, and earned Keyser Sun Belt Coach of the Year honors. In addition to championship success, Keyser has demonstrated the ability to rebuild and develop talent. Following a rebuilding period in 2010-11, he led South Alabama to one of the nation’s top turnarounds in 2012. His program has produced multiple conference Players of the Year and nationally ranked student-athletes, with four players earning end-of-season national rankings during his tenure. Prior to becoming head coach, Keyser spent three seasons as an assistant coach with the South Alabama men’s tennis program. A former Jaguar student-athlete from 1994-97, he was a member of three Sun Belt championship teams and helped lead the program to three NCAA Tournament appearances, including a national quarterfinal finish in 1995. He concluded his collegiate career with a 46-14 singles record and a 56-10 doubles mark, earning All-Sun Belt honors in doubles twice. From his time as a student-athlete to his decades on the sidelines, Keyser has played an integral role in the growth and sustained success of South Alabama women’s tennis.