Women in Coaching with Alex Covington

I know what you’re thinking. Two interviews with amazing women coaches in two weeks from ASW? How could we be so lucky? Well fortunately for you all I have strep throat and my workplace highly frowns upon showing up to work febrile, so I snagged an extra day off. This is an interview that I started over the summer and took a little while to get done, but I’m VERY excited to be bringing you Coach Alex Covington, the Director of Tennis at Millikin University. She has a lot on her plate as the Head Men and Women’s Tennis Coach, but she absolutely loves her job.

For a little background, she did her undergrad at University of Indianapolis where she obviously played on their team. She was an ITA Scholar Athlete 2010-2013 and on the All-Conference Academic Team in 2011. After graduation she went to the University of Louisville where she earned a MA in History (ask her about her thesis on Mary I). During that time she dabbled in coaching and decided that coaching was the career for her. She spent two years as the assistant men and women’s coach at Allegheny College in PA before being named the Director of Tennis at Millikin University in May 2017.

Now it’s not uncommon to see one coach work both the men’s and women’s teams in D3 tennis, but I can’t name any other women off the top of my head (I’m also having a fever so I’m not trying that hard) who fill that same role. I was very curious how Coach Covington handled the added stress of managing two teams, especially given prevalent biases still are against women coaches. But enough from me, let’s hear it from her!

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ASW: Coach Covington! So honored to hear your story. Our mutual friend @D3RegASouth has many nice things to say about you and obviously a lot of respect for you. Tell us- How did you get into coaching? Was it something you always wanted to do? When did you see it as a viable career option?

AC: I got into coaching by chance actually. I have played tennis since I was 4 years old and have been teaching since I was in high school but I did not get into coaching teams until I was in grad school. I left my name and number with a local club and one of the area high school coaches called looking for an assistant and that was it. While I finished my masters, I applied for college coaching jobs and I ended up getting one. I have always loved tennis and knew I wanted it to remain a part of my life but I am so happy that it has become a career for me. I saw it as a viable career option when I started coaching the high school team and spoke to some mentors of mine who encouraged me to give it a try.

ASW: I feel like a lot of former college players start missing tennis a year into grad school, but in your case it changed your career trajectory! How did you become the Director of Tennis at Millikin just 4 short years after graduating from college? 

AC: I have been coaching tennis since I was 15. I used to coach at the Stanford University Nike Tennis Camps under coaches Lele Forood, John Whitlinger, and Dick Gould.  I had a lot of experience from my years playing and coaching and felt ready to get into the profession. I was the assistant coach at Allegheny College for two years at the beginning of my coaching career. During that time, I was able to experience all aspects of the program and as the end of my second year approached, I started to apply for head coaching jobs. Millikin is a great fit for me and the administration liked what I had to say and my plans for my future program. Luckily, they believed in me enough to offer me this position.

ASW: Rightfully so! We saw in the NCAA piece on women in coaching that only 3% of men’s teams are coached by women. As a coach of a men’s team, has that been your experience? 

AC: Women coaching men’s teams is still very rare, its true. I would not have guessed it would be 3%, I hope it will only rise. I only know of a handful of teams in the DIII Central region that have a woman coaching men, either as a head coach or an assistant. I am happy to see more women in these positions, but we do still have a long way to go.

ASW: Have you noticed any differences in the way you are treated when you are acting as a men’s coach vs a women’s coach? This can be from other coaches, players, recruits, department staff, etc. 

AC: Luckily for me, I have noticed very little difference in how I am treated by players, colleagues, recruits, and other coaches. When I took over my program at Millikin, there were some growing pains but I do not attribute that to my gender. I attribute it more to being the new coach. There are some who are surprised that I coach both men and women, but they have become fewer over the years. Professionally, I always say I am a coach first, a woman second. I do not want my gender to define my profession.

ASW: In my last interview with Coach Ness, she unfortunately had quite a few stories about challenging moment’s she’s faced as a coach. If you are comfortable, can you tell us about challenges you’ve faced as a woman? 

AC: I have a few of those stories as well, sadly. One that stands out to me is a phone call I received a little over a year ago. I had one woman call to ask for volunteers from my team and asked for my husband when I answered the phone. I am unmarried and was the only tennis coach at Millikin. She assumed that my husband was the Coach Covington she was looking for. When I politely corrected her, she said “Oh. Well, it never occurred to me that a woman could do that job.” That story always stands out to me because it is an attitude that so many women in coaching face and it was the first time it had ever happened to me. I have had players mouth off to me and tell me I do not know what I am talking about. I have had players try and get me fired. I have had issues with assistant coaches. Luckily, I have the support of my administration and Athletic Director and they supported me through those times and I was able to deal with the issues as I needed to. I am lucky to not have as many negative encounters as some of my peers. I try my best not to focus on those negative encounters, and they have been more uncommon as I have been at Millikin.

ASW: It certainly sounds like you’ve had more than your fair share of challenges but have been able to overcome them! What advice do you have for aspiring women coaches who face these challenges or will inevitably face these challenges? 

AC: Do not let them get you down. I was lucky enough to attend the NCAA Women’s Coaching Academy (Class #44!) last summer and learned so much more about my profession. There were so many horror stories from the other women in attendance and following a difficult first year as a head coach, it was what I needed to recharge. During the Academy, I learned that the most important things I needed as I progress in this career were support and to find and remember my WHY. People, but especially women, will succeed when we feel supported and valued. Most women leave coaching because they do not feel supported or valued. Feeling a lack of value and support make it difficult to succeed in any environment. I am happy to say that I feel valued and supported in my current situation. The other half of my advice is about finding your WHY. Why do you coach? Why are you excited to go to work? Why are you happy in this career? Knowing the answer to those questions will help to keep you focused on the good things, even through the bad. My WHY is very easy. It is the joy and pride that I feel when I see my players succeed, whether it is in the classroom, on the practice court, in a match, or after graduation. My athletes are my WHY.

ASW: Very well said! On a lighter note, what is your favorite thing about coaching? 

AC: My favorite thing about coaching would definitely be my relationships with my athletes. The trust that we build and the fun that we get to have at practice or on team trips are hard to compare to anything else. We work hard every day to achieve our mutual goals and I would not trade that for anything.

ASW: In D3, it is far more common to have the same head coach for both the men’s and women’s teams than it is D1. What additional challenges do you face managing two teams?

AC: The biggest challenges are time management and recruiting. Recruiting is year round and it is hard to be able to recruit the way I want to when I am in season throughout the year. My conference is also slightly different than most since we have our women’s conference season in the fall and men in the spring. When both teams are playing at the same time, my days are very long and it is sometimes hard to manage my time.

ASW: Sounds like you could use a vacation. Alright I’ve taken up enough of your time but finally, for a fun question, what are your bold predictions for the Millikin men’s and women’s tennis teams for the 2020 season? 

AC: My bold predictions for my teams, I love this question! My bold prediction for my women’s team is to finish in the top 4. It will be difficult for us but if we keep working the way we have been, it’s possible. We were very even with a few teams in the conference last year and many matches could have gone either way. I think this group is motivated to do it. As for the men, my goal for them is top 3. We have 4 of our top 6 returning from last year and a huge freshman class. I think we have a good chance to make some major moves this year on both sides.

ASW: Well good luck to your men and women! The Blog will be keeping an eye on them!

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Although she’s only been head coach for a few years now, Coach Covington’s words are so wise! Our D3 community has so many intelligent, kind people and I’m here for it. I especially admire her ability to see past the negatives and focus on the positives of her job and her players.

I won’t go on a typical ASW rant here since I’m overdue for a nap and Alex’s words above really carry this article on their own, but I will say that I don’t have any more women in coaching articles in the works at this time and I want that to change! If you or anyone you know is a woman in coaching, we will absolutely share your story on the blog. My lane is the #humansofD3 thing right now so even if you aren’t a woman coach and just want to be interviewed on the blog, I’d probably do it. My email is d3asouthwomens@gmail.com

On that note, happy Friday ladies and gentlemen!

ASW