After Jordan Szabo helped lead Texas A&M to its first national championship in May 2024, he had almost no time to celebrate with his alma mater. Szabo, who had accepted his first head coaching job at Auburn earlier in the Aggies’ postseason run, went from coaching a championship team on May 19 to a roster of just three players the next day.
“There was a lot going on, but I was really excited to get going and find a team,” Szabo recalled. “It was a little stressful with the number of roster spots we needed to fill, especially because the transfer portal in women’s tennis isn’t quite as prevalent as it is in some other sports. It was all about getting the brand out there, finding players that would be interested and would be a good fit to help us.
“When I reflect on that time, there was a lot of unknown, but also excitement because it was a new challenge and somewhat refreshing. I remember knowing that it was going to be a lot of travel, a lot of hard work and a lot of messages and calls. A lot has happened since then, but I remember it being an exciting time, even not knowing what the next few months were going to look like.”
Szabo spent his first days on the job on the recruiting trail, with his temporary home base at the Auburn University Hotel while he and his wife, Grace, completed the move to the Plains. June 18, 2024, became a day to remember for Tiger tennis supporters, as Jordan was officially introduced as the program’s 12th head coach during a press conference at the Woltosz Football Performance Center.
“I actually had just gotten back from Europe doing a little recruiting trip over there,” said Szabo. “I remember flying into Atlanta and jumping into that the next day. I had obviously gotten to know John [Cohen], Lee [Van Horn] and some of the administration through the interview process, but I got to meet a lot of the support staff in person for the first time like Misti [Higgs], Riley [Hubbard] and others. Everyone there was so kind to me. Now I know that’s just how people are here at Auburn all the time. You think everyone’s just putting on a good first impression, but that’s how people are here 24/7.”
The first-time head coach wasted no time sharing his vision and expectations for the program to the packed room.
“It was my first time doing a head coach introductory press conference, so I didn’t know how it was going to go, and there were definitely some nerves,” said the two-time ITA National Assistant Coach of the Year. “I remember saying something to the effect of thinking we would be really good straight away. I don’t remember the exact quote, but I do remember my wife afterwards telling me I had made a bold statement. At the time, I still hadn’t signed a player, so we had three girls and I really put the heat on myself at the beginning. But that was a special day. It was nice to get in front of people and feel like I was really a part of the Auburn Family.”
It wasn’t long after the press conference that Szabo built the lean roster he inherited into a talented group of Tigers. Merna Refaat, an African Games doubles gold medalist who had regularly represented Egypt in international competition, joined as one of Szabo’s first signees in July.
Shortly after, Szabo picked up collegiate veteran Ava Hrastar, a former ITA Doubles All-American with experience at Georgia Tech and Ole Miss, French talent Alice Battesti and a few others to complete the 2024–25 roster. Once the players were in place, it was time to turn a team with little collegiate experience into a championship contender.
“We really worked hard and helped the girls get better, and focused on trying to help the players that we had improve,” Szabo said. “I think having a very successful fall really opened the girls’ eyes that we were doing the right things because the players were producing good results. We just tried to focus on what matters, which is helping the players improve and create value for themselves as tennis players. Then the results spoke for themselves.”
A successful fall was an understatement. At the 2024–25 NCAA Singles & Doubles Championships, history was made in Szabo’s first few months on the Plains. Refaat, junior DJ Bennett and junior Angella Okutoyi each qualified for the NCAA Singles Championship, while Bennett and Hrastar earned a bid to the NCAA Doubles Championship.
Refaat and Bennett each earned ITA Singles All-American honors, while Bennett and Hrastar both received ITA Doubles All-American honors for their respective runs in Waco, Texas, in November. Bennett became the second player in program history to reach the NCAA singles finals, while she and Hrastar became the second Auburn duo to reach the semifinals on the doubles side.
The history-making continued in the spring. Auburn earned its highest-ranked win since 2007 early in the non-conference schedule, defeating No. 3 Oklahoma State on Feb. 1. The Tigers then took down No. 4 Stanford and No. 8 North Carolina at the ITA National Team Indoor Championship in Evanston, Illinois, later that month.
Auburn didn’t let up during the SEC slate either, matching the most conference wins in program history with an 11–4 record. That included victories over No. 6 Tennessee and No. 9 Texas, leading to a tie for third place in the SEC standings. After reaching the SEC Championship semifinals, the Tigers were selected as the No. 9 overall seed in the NCAA Championship — the highest seeding in team history. Auburn won its home regional with wins over South Carolina State and Wisconsin to punch the program’s fifth-ever ticket to the NCAA Super Regionals.
“To finish with the highest year-end ranking in program history at No. 8, earn a lot of accolades, a top-three finish in the SEC and a lot of other program records was great,” said Szabo, who earned ITA Southern Region Coach of the Year honors after the season. “But you always want more. Reflecting on the season, it was very special, and I think the girls grew as players throughout the season, too. It was a lot of hard work by a lot of people, and we couldn’t have done it without Pete [Francis], Val [Zeleva], Misti, Jordan [Nilson], Hanna [Arnsten] and all the support staff who played pivotal roles in us being successful.”
On top of the four All-America honors, Auburn also earned three All-SEC selections and five ITA regional awards. Bennett finished the season ranked No. 3 nationally in singles and was a finalist for the CWSA Honda Award for Tennis.