Last year, Kati Gyulai (KAHT-ya joo-LIE-ee) helped Wyoming's women's tennis team beat The University of Texas-Pan American when the two teams met at Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Now, Gyulai enters her first season as Texas-Pan American's new assistant tennis coach.

Gyulai comes from a coaching background. Both her father and her uncle coached cross-country skiing in her native Romania, one of her godfathers is a hockey coach, and another is a gymnastics coach.

Originally from Gyergyoszentmiklos, Romania, Gyulai began playing tennis at the age of five. A multi-sport athlete, she attended Salamon Erno HS in Romania, and was recruited to Cloud County Community College in Concordia, Kansas to join the basketball team as a shooting guard.

After her freshman season, Gyulai concentrated on tennis at Cloud County CC. As a freshman, Gyulai was both the Jayhawk West Conference and the Region VI champion in singles and doubles. She qualified for the National Junior College Athletic Association championships, and was ranked seventh in singles and 11th in doubles in the NJCAA. As a sophomore, Gyulai finished second both in conference and regional play, and also participated in indoor track, running 400, 600 and 800 meters and being a member of the 4 x 800 meter and distance medley relay teams.

Recruited by Wyoming to play tennis, Gyulai went 13-9 in singles as a senior, alternating between the top three singles positions and seeing playing time at the number one and two positions in doubles. She qualified as an individual in both singles and doubles for the NCAA Central Region Championships in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Gyulai, who earned an associate's degree in Pre-Law at Cloud County CC and a B.A. in International Studies from Wyoming, was on the Dean's List at Cloud County, and the Honor Roll at UW. She received an academic scholarship at Cloud County CC, and earned Mountain West Academic All-Conference honors at Wyoming. At UW, she also was the Rendel Family Athletic Scholarship recipient, was named Most Improved Player and Most Dedicated Player as a senior.

"I feel good about Texas-Pan American, it's a nice, warm place, perfectly suited for tennis," said Gyulai. "I feel that I'm not ready to step away from tennis just yet. I came from a coaching background, and I feel that I can bring something to a team that is improving."

"I am excited to have Kati on board," said UTPA Head Coach Eduardo Provencio. "Her experience as a player in a big conference, the Mountain West Conference, will translate well as a coach. She has a great background in fitness and conditioning, and her experience in the weight room will be a huge asset to us."