Over the past few years, the consistent theme around the tennis program at Marist College has been the exact opposite: volatility.
After being hired in September as the third different director of Marist Tennis in the past year and a half, Nathaniel Horner is confident he can finally bring the program the consistency it has been searching for from a leadership and on-court standpoint.
Being hired to bring a constant force to the head of Marist Tennis, Horner has had a relatively inconstant career himself. He completed his collegiate playing career at Division III Bridgewater (Va.) College in 2019 and now finds himself in his fourth different coaching position since then, though it is the first time he has held the reins to a Division I program.
Back in 2019, Horner joined the coaching staff at the University of Delaware as a volunteer assistant. He then spent one season, in 2021, as the head coach at the New Mexico Military Institute, a small military junior college. His next move was to Division III Grove City (Pa.) College, where he remained until his hiring at Marist.
The Grove City job was the perfect situation for Horner at the time, granting him an opportunity to lead an NCAA program while also being relatively close to family in Virginia. Those factors meant more to Horner than the characteristics of the job itself.
“When the Grove City opportunity came up, it was an opportunity where I had the opportunity to be the head coach, do it my way, [and] knew that I was going to be, egotistically speaking, successful wherever I went. I didn’t care if it was the worst job in the country,” said Horner.
There is a glimpse into the confidence of Horner. He knew he was going to be successful no matter what job he took.
“Good coaches have really, really strong confidence, but they don’t allow it to go beyond to become arrogant. And I felt comfortable that it was confidence and not arrogance,” said Marist Director of Athletics Tim Murray.
Just as he knew he would be, Horner was largely successful and enjoyed his time at Grove City. He compiled a 94-39 overall record, most recently leading the women’s team to the 2023-2024 Presidents’ Athletic Conference title. But the job ultimately served as a stepping stone for him to get to the level where he feels he belongs: Division I.
“I feel like this is the level that I’m supposed to be at, I like it more now than I did being at Division III,” Horner said. “There’s money, scholarships, and resources involved. It’s been a healthy adjustment.”
Regardless of his confidence, transitioning to the forefront of a Division I program is an adjustment, more so for Horner, whose only experience in Division I was as a volunteer assistant at Delaware. The talent is better, the facilities are better, the stakes are higher and the scheduling and conferences are different.
As far as Murray is concerned, Horner has a “pretty good grasp” on what it takes to be a Division I coach. For example, recruiting is critically important to a Division I program. The level of competition is incredibly high, and regardless of the quality of coaching, facilities, or any other factors, the team will not be able to compete without a high level of talent in-house. That starts with recruiting, and according to Murray, Horner is already on the right track.
“He feels strongly about bringing in a pretty high-level men’s player that will help us build up the roster for the spring season,” Murray said.
As far as Horner’s perspective on transitioning to Division I, he acknowledged that the “wins and losses mean a little bit more at this level.” Instead of that being something that concerns him or weighs him down, it is more so something that excites and fuels him.
Horner’s previous roles, especially at Grove City, ultimately shaped the coach that Marist chose to resurrect its tennis program: laid-back and confident.
“I would call myself a player’s coach,” said Horner. “Not a lot really bothers me too much. I really want to give my players the tools to be successful.”
One of those tools that Horner is most focused on, and perhaps befitting of his laid-back personality, is establishing an understanding within his players of how to be “patient” both on and off the court. He feels that some other MAAC teams are more disciplined and more patient with each other, which allows them to compete more effectively as a team. That is something that Horner believes is important to develop within his program but will also take some time.
“We’re very much still building a culture here. Hopefully, it turns into a positive one, but I still believe that our culture right now is we’ve planted the seed, but it hasn’t rooted yet,” said Horner. “My system is a lot different than the systems they’ve had before. Some of them have had multiple coaches, they’ve transferred, etc. So, it’s all very fresh, and I feel like we’re just scraping the surface of the potential that we have.”
Throughout the inconsistent leadership of the past few years, the program has seen lackluster results. Last season, the women’s team finished with a 2-22 record and failed to win a conference match. Their conference winless streak extends back to the 2021-2022 season. They have not qualified for the MAAC Championships since 2018-2019 and have not had a .500 or better season since 2017-2018.
The men have fared slightly better, qualifying for the MAAC Championships in each of the past two seasons. Yet they have not finished with an overall record above .500 over a full season since the 2018-2019 campaign and failed to advance beyond the first round of the MAAC Championships in each of their recent trips.
Given the struggles of the program and the turnover in recent memory, Horner is looking for the team to finish better than .500 overall this coming spring. That is what Horner would consider a “success” in his first season at the helm, but not what his ultimate goal is.
“The goal for me is never going to change, and that’s to win the conference every year,” said Horner. “I don’t care if it’s year one or year 30 for me. I think that we have enough talent here that I wouldn’t put it past us.”
The fall season just recently came to an end for Marist. The team did not achieve incredible results, but did manage to compete against largely difficult competition; the first step in turning the trajectory of the program around.
Sophomore Cloe Clements Sorde defeated Harvard’s Elsie Ragatz at the ITA Regionals this fall, something Murray saw as an early positive reflection of Horner.
“Harvard and Ivy League schools are really strong in tennis,” said Murray. “I think that says an awful lot, for a young lady who was here last year, just in the short amount of time that he’s been here he’s had an impact.”
Murray also made note that so far, he has received positive feedback from the athletes about Horner. Perhaps that is to be expected, given Horner’s analysis of himself as a “player’s coach.” His relative youth, having been in their position as a collegiate tennis player himself just five years ago, also serves as a way for him to understand and relate to his players, undoubtedly aiding their impression of him as a coach and mentor.
“I think they like his style; they like his access and his ability to be with them,” said Murray.
Marist Tennis has a long road to climb. Last season seemed to reach a breaking point for the program and highlighted their need for new, sustained direction. Horner hopes to be the right man for the job.
Edited by Dan Aulbach and Marley Pope
Graphic by Quinn DiFiore
Photo from Marist Athletics