One of Connecticut College’s finest all-around competitors, Timothy Smith ‘90 mastered two sports disciplines and was a model student-athlete. The Dean’s List student received the 1990 Brown-Brooks Award for excellence in scholarship, leadership, and sportsmanship. He then parlayed his tennis talents into professional playing and teaching/coaching careers.
In his rookie season on the tennis courts, Smith earned a remarkable 21-2 overall record (11-1 at #3 singles, 10-1 at #3 doubles), leading the team to one of its most impressive seasons at 11-1. At the 1987 NESCAC Championships, he helped the Camels advance to a second-place finish, the highest in program history and just a half-point behind champion Williams College. As a sophomore, Smith posted an 18-6 overall mark (8-3 singles, 10-3 doubles) as the squad went 12-2 and was NESCAC runner-up again.
After studying in Japan the following spring, Smith returned to the tennis team as a 1990 senior tri-captain. He went 13-0 at #1 singles before his first season defeat – to a Division I player – and achieved a stellar 29-4 overall record (18-3 singles, 11-1 doubles). He guided the Camels to a school-record 16 wins against just three losses, and they were ranked as high as seconds in New England and 18th nationally in the ITCA Division III poll.
At the 1990 NESCAC Championships, Smith was seeded second in A-flight singles and won his first three matches. After playing for more than seven hours on a very hot day, he succumbed to severe muscle cramps and required hospitalization.
Smith recovered to compete in the NCAA singles and doubles championships and closed out his final season ranked both regionally (#3 singles, #3 doubles) and nationally (#31 singles, #20 doubles). He received the NESCAC Clarence Chaffee Award for outstanding sportsmanship and leadership. The team’s Most Valuable Player in each of his three seasons (1987, 1988, 1990), he produced an overall career 68-12 record (37-7 singles, 31-5 doubles) while leading the squad to a 39-6 mark.
An outstanding midfielder, Smith was part of four winning soccer seasons (38-18-2 overall) and two ECAC tournament appearances. In his freshman campaign, the Camels were 13-3 overall– reeling off a school-record 11 consecutive wins– and ranked as high as 13th in the country. They finished the season as the ECAC New England runners-up.
Two seasons later, Smith helped lead the 1988 squad to a 9-3-2 overall mark and the ECAC New England Tournament semifinals. In four seasons, Smith scored 15 goals and added 12 assists for 42 career points. In addition to serving as a senior tri-captain, he received the team’s Most Improved Player (1987, 1988) and Unsung Hero (1989) awards.
Following graduation, Smith competed and coached for several years on the international professional tennis circuit. Since 1999, he has been a tennis pro and director of junior tennis at the historic Longwood Cricket Club in Chestnut Hill, Mass. For the past 10 years, he has also been a co-director of the New England Academy of Tennis Coaches, which develops and supports up and coming junior tennis players.
Smith has received several accolades, including the United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA), 1999 Northeast Coach of the Year, and 2010 New England Regional Professional of the Year. Since 2006, he has served on the United States Tennis Association (USTA) Junior Sportsmanship Committee; and he received the 2008 USTA William Freedman Award for outstanding contribution to New England junior tennis.
In 2006, after eight years of martial arts training, Smith earned his second-degree black belt, which has deeply enlightened his coaching and teaching career. For the past six years, he has been a tennis advisor to Tenacity, a non-profit organization serving at-risk Boston youth.
Smith also has led a cycling team that has raised more than $100,000 in the annual Pan-Mass Challenge, a 192-mile cycling fundraiser for cancer research and treatment.
