Penn State Women’s Tennis Names Alexandra Anghelescu Head Coach

Former Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour professional and Georgia Tech standout Alexandra Anghelescu was named head coach of Penn State women’s tennis Monday.

Anghelescu will replace former head coach Chris Cagle, who resigned in May after eight seasons in Happy Valley. Anghelescu spent the 2019 season as an assistant coach for the Nittany Lions.

“Alex will bring an energy, excitement and a focus to our program, from which she will lead us to success on and off the court,” athletic director Sandy Barbour said in a release. “She has demonstrated the ability to create high achievement at every level of the game of tennis; collegiately as a player, in the professional ranks and as a collegiate assistant coach.”

The Georgia native reached the top 10 of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s doubles rankings at Georgia Tech as a player. As a professional, she notched high rankings of 935 and 957 in WTA singles and doubles, respectively.

Anghelescu served as a volunteer assistant coach for a top-ranked University of North Carolina team during the 2017-2018 season before arriving in Happy Valley last June. She helped coach the Nittany Lions to an improved 11 dual match victories and their first top-50 ranking since 2016 during the 2019 Spring season.