Gophers Welcome Lois Arterberry as Head Tennis Coach

University of Minnesota Director of Athletics Mark Coyle announced today that Lois Arterberry (pronounced Loyce) has been named head tennis coach, pending the completion of a background check. Arterberry, who comes to Minnesota from the University of St. Thomas, brings more than nine years of coaching experience to the Golden Gopher program. She replaces Catrina Thompson, who led the Gophers the past six seasons.

"I'm excited to welcome Lois, her husband Marquis and their daughter, Madisyn, to Minnesota," said Coyle. "She will bring a passion for providing a world-class experience for our student-athletes and will prepare them to be successful athletically, academically and socially. I am thrilled for her to meet the team and to lead our program."

Arterberry coached at St Thomas for two seasons and guided the program through its transition from Division III to Division I. In that span, she led the Tommies to their first-ever Division I win against conference foe Western Illinois in March 2022. This past season, she coached Marthe Degeorges to All-Summit League honors and saw three of her student-athletes receive CSC Academic All-District recognition.

"First I'd like to thank God for opening the door for this amazing opportunity for my family and me," said Arterberry. "A huge thank you to Director of Athletics Mark Coyle and Assistant Athletic Director Jenny Yehlen for believing in my vision for the program. I am excited to work with this awesome group of women and bring passion and fire to the tennis program. Being part of an institution that stands on the mission of excellence on and off the court aligns directly with my values. I will work tirelessly to bring this program success in the classroom and in competition. I look forward to your continued support of Gophers Tennis."

Prior to St. Thomas, Arterberry was at Missouri for two years. She was a volunteer assistant in 2019-20 and was an assistant coach in 2020-21. She was a volunteer assistant at UNC Asheville in 2018-19. Arterberry was the head coach at Eastern Illinois in 2017-18 and from 2015-17, she served as Jackson State's men's and women's head coach. During her time at Jackson State, Arterberry guided the men's program to back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Tournament, as well as its first conference title in 18 years in 2016. On the women's side, Jackson State made back-to-back HBCU Championship finals appearances in 2016 and 2017.

Arterberry played collegiately at Southern University, where she was a three-time Southwestern Athletic Conference champion and led her team to three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 2011-13. She graduated from Southern University with a bachelor's degree in business management in 2013 and a master's degree in business administration in 2015. Arterberry began her coaching career at her alma mater where she was a graduate assistant for two years.

Originally from Grenada, Arterberry was a standout athlete in her home country. In 2014, she represented Grenada at the Caribbean and Central American Games. Arterberry was the top junior and No. 2 female in Grenada from 2002-14, and was a five-time recipient of the Grenada Sports Woman of the Year award.

Arterberry and her husband, Marquis, have a daughter, Madisyn.