William & Mary Athletics

In six seasons as the Tribe's head coach, Tyler Thomson guided the Tribe to five Colonial Athletic Association Championships. Thomson tallied an 86-56 (.606) mark over his six seasons and owns a career dual-match win total to 197. He was a two-time CAA Coach of the Year (2013 and 2018).

W&M made five NCAA Tournament appearances during his six seasons. Thomson led W&M to final ITA National Rankings inside the top 50 on four occasions. The Tribe reached season-high national rankings inside the top 30 in both 2015 and 2016. W&M finished 2016 at No. 39 in the national rankings to go along with standings of No. 44 in 2013, No. 49 in 2015 and No. 45 in 2018.

Under his tutelage, 21 Tribe players earned All-CAA honors in singles and nine doubles teams garnered All-CAA accolades. Thomson-lead charges were named CAA Player of the Year on five occasions, CAA Freshman of the Year three times and the Most Outstanding Performer of the CAA Championship on thee occasions.
 
Of the 86 career victories for the Tribe under Thomson, 19 have come against nationally-ranked competition, including a 6-4 in 2016. W&M owns a number of impressive victories, including four over top 30 teams. W&M topped No. 19 Mississippi and No. 28 South Carolina in 2013. The Tribe knocked off then-No. 28 South Carolina, who eventually went 9-4 in the SEC, hosted an NCAA Regional and finished the year at No. 17 in the national polls, in 2016. During the 2018 campaign, W&M handed No. 19 Wake Forest a 4-3 setback in Williamsburg. The Green and Gold knocked off 20 Power Five Conference opponents in Thomson’s six seasons.
 
The Tribe closed out 2016 at 18-7 overall, including a 6-3 ledger against Power Five Conference opponents. The 18 wins were the most for a Tribe team since 2007 when the Green and Gold won 22 matches. The 18 victories were tied for the most in Thomson’s coaching career along with his 2003 Big Ten Championship Minnesota team. W&M garnered a final national ranking of No. 39 in 2016, which was the highest for the program since 2008.

Elizaveta Nemchinov enjoyed a storied Tribe career under Thomson’s tutelage. She earned CAA Player of the Year honors during her final two campaigns in 2015 and 2016, becoming just the sixth player in CAA history and third Tribe athlete, to earn the distinction on two occasions. Nemchinov was ranked in the top 100 nationally at the end of her junior and senior campaigns and garnered a spot in the NCAA Singles Championship during both seasons. She set the program mark for singles winning percentage (.871) with a 27-4 mark in 2015 and closed out the campaign at No. 65 nationally. In 2016, Nemchinov advanced to the second round at the NCAA Singles Championship as one of the final 32 competitors, a first for the Tribe since 2008.
 
During Thomson’s six seasons, the Tribe had five total participants (three singles and two doubles teams) in the NCAA Individual Championships. Maria Belaya, the 2013 CAA Player of the Year, was the first to take part in the singles event in 2013. She and Jeltje Loomans, who finished the year ranked No. 13 nationally, advanced to the round of 16 in the 2013 NCAA Doubles Championship. Along with Nemchinov’s singles championship appearances in 2015 and 2016, she teamed with Loomans to earn a spot in the doubles championship. In the process, Loomans became just the fourth player in W&M history to advance to the NCAA Individual Championships during each of her four seasons.
           
Thomson earned CAA Coach of the Year honors after turning the Tribe around in his first season at the helm in 2012-13. After the program finished 2012 at 6-16 and fell in the CAA Quarterfinals for the first time, Thomson took over the reigns and guided the program to a 17-6 overall record. The program won its 22nd CAA Championship and made its 19th NCAA Tournament appearance.
 
The Tribe has claimed two individuals ITA Atlantic Region Championships during Thomson’s tenure. In 2012, the duo of Loomans and Belaya won the regional doubles crown. This past year, Marie Faure, who was named the 2017 CAA Player of the Year, won six-straight matches to win the region singles championship.

A pair of Tribe doubles teams competed in the ITA All-American Doubles Championship Main Draw over the last five years. W&M also had a doubles team compete in the ITA National Indoor Championship (Belaya and Loomans) as well as a singles player in both the ITA All-American Main Draw (Belaya) and the ITA National Indoor Championship (Faure).

In his 17-year career as a head coach, Thomson mentored eight singles players and seven doubles teams that finished the year in the ITA National Rankings. His players have earned a total of 40 all-league honors. Thomson-coached athletes have been named an ITA Scholar-Athlete for their success in the classroom on 65 occasions over his 17 years and 16 of his teams have garnered ITA All-Academic Team awards, producing a GPA of better than 3.2.

Thomson was named the ninth head women's tennis coach in Tribe history on June 21, 2012. An assistant at W&M from 1997-01, he spent 11 years as the head coach at the University of Minnesota before returning to Williamsburg. During his tenure with the Golden Gophers, Thomson led Minnesota to 111 victories, including the program's first Big Ten regular season crown in 2003.
 
Five times over his final six seasons at Minnesota, Thomson led the Golden Gophers to a spot in the final national rankings. In 2011-12, Minnesota finished the season ranked No. 39 nationally and started the campaign a program-best 12-1, including a triumph over W&M on Feb. 3. Minnesota finished the season with 16 victories, including nine against nationally-ranked opponents, and earned an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament. On Feb. 19, 2012, Thomson reached a coaching milestone with his 100th career victory as Minnesota upset No. 46 N.C. State, 5-2, in Raleigh, N.C.

In just his second season at the helm of the Golden Gopher program, Thomson, who was the fifth head women's tennis coach in Minnesota history, led the program to a 9-1 regular season league record and its first Big Ten regular season crown in 2003. The Gophers advanced to the championship match of the Big Ten Tournament for the first time and earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament before finishing with an 18-7 mark. For his efforts, Thomson was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year. During the regular season, Minnesota snapped No. 17-ranked Northwestern's 29-match Big Ten winning streak on the way to the regular season crown. In 2004, Thomson coached two-time All-Big Ten selection Angela Buergis to a spot in the NCAA Singles Championship and a final national ranking of No. 70.

During Thomson's tenure at Minnesota, six singles players and four doubles teams finished the year in the ITA National Rankings, and on 10 occasions a Golden Gopher player was named to the All-Big Ten team. Along with the success on the court, Thomson's teams succeeded in the classroom. The Minnesota women's tennis program routinely accumulated one of the highest team grade point averages in the athletics department, and on three occasions (2002, 2009 and 2010) received the school's Academic Award for the highest GPA among women's sports. In total, 44 of Thomson's players were named an ITA Scholar-Athlete for their success in the classroom, and as a team, the Gopher earned ITA All-Academic Team awards in 10 of Thomson's 11 seasons, producing a GPA of better than 3.2.

Thomson is no stranger to Tribe tennis, having served as an assistant coach for the women's program for four seasons. During his time in Williamsburg, the Tribe won three Colonial Athletic Association Championships (1998, 1999 and 2000) and advanced NCAA Tournament on three occasions, including a quarterfinal finish in 1998. Thomson assisted in developing three All-Americans, six ITA Scholar-Athlete All-Americans and 10 ITA nationally-ranked players during his Green and Gold tenure. Following the 1999 season, Thomson was named the ITA East Region Assistant Coach of the Year and was a finalist for the national assistant coach of the year award.

During the 2008-09 season, Thomson was honored as one of the nation's top teaching pros by the U.S. Professional Tennis Association as the recipient of the Northern Division Women's College Coach of the Year award. He holds a rating of Professional 1, which is the highest rating given by the USPTA. He was selected to participate in the USTA's High Performance Continuing Education Program at the 2008 U.S. Open in New York City and also took part in the program in 2006 while becoming a USPTA specialist in competitive player development.

Thomson spent one season as an assistant coach at Allegheny College (Pa.) prior to joining W&M in 1997. He was a four-year starter during his playing days at the University of Montana. Thomson earned a bachelor's degree in English literature from Montana in 1993. A Bismarck, N.D., native, he earned All-America honors in 1989 as a senior at Bismarck High School.

Thomson and his wife, Amy, have two children, a daughter, Bryter (11), and a son, Lincoln (8).