johnson

Charlotte
Tennis
JESSE
TARR
Assistant Coach
Third Season
James Madison, 2008
After being named the Charlotte men's tennis assistant in the summer of 2010, Tarr became the choice for the women's tennis assistant in a dual role shortly
thereafter. He enters his third season in his dual role with both programs.
Tarr played an important role in the men's and women's teams combining for the third-best total win percentage across both programs in school history. Both
49er teams earned byes (the men were the top seed, while the women were seeded second) to the conference tournaments. The men's program earned a record
number of all-conference selections, while the women's program had the school's first ranked doubles pair.
Tarr came to Charlotte after a year as an assistant coach at William and Mary. After a standout career at James Madison, the native of Midlothian, Va., started his
coaching career as a volunteer assistant under Greg Patton at Boise State, which finished No. 20 in the country at the end of the 2009 season.
William and Mary tied the school record with 20 wins in 2010 and clinched the number-one seed in the Colonial Athletic Association for the first time in school history.
The Tribe reached a ranking as high as No. 53 during the year and finished the season ranked No. 75. Three players were named first-team All-CAA in singles and doubles.
Tarr served as the recruiting coordinator for the program, which received votes for the "Top Recruiting Classes" list at tennisrecruiting.net and was ranked No. 6 for
"Top Mid-Major Classes" at the same website. Student-athletes Sebastian Vidal and Keziel Juneau were ranked as high as No. 19 in the nation in doubles, qualified for
the main draw at the ITA All-American Championships and also qualified for the NCAA Doubles Championships. Juneau was the Atlantic Region winner of the Arthur
Ashe Sportsmanship and Leadership Award and the Rafael Osuna Sportsmanship Award.
Tarr's season at Boise State culminated in a NCAA Round of 16 appearance and a record of 24-9 in 2009, the second-best mark in school history. Included in the
tournament run was an upset win over regional host and No. 14-seeded Alabama in the second round. The Broncos had three All-WAC singles players and two All-
WAC doubles teams in 2008-09, including the WAC Player of the Year, Clancy Shields, and the Freshman of the Year, James Meredith. Shields finished the year ranked
No. 24 nationally in singles and was named the winner of the ITA National Rafael Osuna Sportsmanship Award. Meredith also garnered ITA Mountain Region Rookie
of the Year honors.
At JMU, Tarr was a four-year starter, earning 110 total victories (combined singles and doubles) in his playing career and earned five All-CAA honors (four in doubles
and one in singles). As a senior, he was named as a finalist for the James Madison University Athlete of the Year Award. During his junior season, Tarr was ranked
No. 15 regionally in doubles for the Mid-East Region with partner Mike Smith. Carrying over to the next year, Tarr and Smith earned a No. 46 national preseason ranking
for the 2007-08 doubles campaign.
While a student at James Madison, he started the "Day with the Dukes" event as a way to give back to the community. Each year, Special Olympics athletes interact
with a variety of Dukes athletes for a fun day on campus, including a home football game. Participants receive a tailgate lunch, have the opportunity to interact
with football players at Bridgeforth Stadium, attend clinics with the basketball and soccer teams and one participant flips the coin before the football game. Approximately
60 Special Olympics athletes attend Day with the Dukes each year, a program that continues after his graduation. The Psychology Peer Advisory Group
provides one-on-one buddies for the day.
Also strong in the classroom, Tarr earned a CAA Commissioner's Academic Award in 2006 and 2008 as well as being named an ITA Scholar Athlete in 2006.
Tarr earned his bachelors of science in psychology with a minor in athletic coaching from James Madison in 2008.
AJ
NELSON
Volunteer Assistant Coach
First Season
Richmond, 2011
Joining the Charlotte women's tennis program as a volunteer assistant coach in Spring 2013 is former Richmond player AJ Nelson. Nelson, who was recruited to
play at Richmond by 49ers men's tennis coach Billy Boykin, saw time with the Spiders from 2009-11, accumulating 26 singles victories during his three seasons. His
first two years at the fellow Atlantic 10 school were under Boykin's watch after he transferred from another league institution, Rhode Island, where he went 28-7.
Prior to coming to Charlotte, Nelson spent time working with the River Club in downtown Manhattan, N.Y., and the Metal Club in Southhampton, N.Y.
He graduated from Richmond in 2011 with a biology degree. He will also assist the Niners men's tennis program as its director of operations.
ASSISTANT
COACHES