| Brian Fleishman |
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Entering his seventh season at the helm of the Wake Forest women's tennis team, Brian Fleishman is one of the best young minds in the business.
Fleishman has compiled a 91-57 record as a head coach, all at WFU. The 2002 ITA National Coach of the Year and the 2000 ACC Coach of the Year, Fleishman has led the Demon Deacons to five NCAA appearances in six years. He has coached 14 All-Americans during his tenure at Wake Forest, which includes two seasons (1997-98) as an assistant coach, two ACC Players of the Year, three ACC Rookie of the Year selections and 15 All-ACC selections, including senior Karin Cotezee and sophomore Ashlee Davis. Under Fleishman's guidance, the Deacons have recorded a 31-16 ACC record the last five seasons and are 9-5 in NCAA Tournament play.
Named the 2002 Wilson/ITA National Coach of the Year by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, Fleishman guided Wake Forest back to the NCAA quarterfinals in 2002 for the second time in three years and the NCAA first round in 2004. During the 2002 season, the Demon Deacons tied the school record for wins in a season and finished with a 24-6 record. Wake was a mainstay in the top 10 of the national rankings that season, reaching as high as second and finishing eighth. Fleishman also coached National Player of the Year, Honda Award Winner, ACC Player of the Year and ACC Athlete of the Year, Bea Bielik, to the National Intercollegiate Indoor Singles and NCAA Singles titles and to No. 1 national rankings in singles and doubles (with Janet Bergman). Bergman and Bielik picked up their third straight All-America honors in doubles and Bielik earned her third consecutive All-America certificate in singles.
Facing a new challenge in 2000-01 with only six players on the roster, Fleishman guided the Demon Deacons to an 18-9 record, a second place finish in the ACC and an eighth-straight appearance in the NCAA Championships. Wake Forest upset higher-seeded Oklahoma State in the second round of regionals to earn a berth in the Sweet 16.
Bergman and Bielik pocketed more All-America accolades in 2001, both earning the honor in singles and doubles. Bielik captured the National Clay Court championship and advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Singles Championship. She also teamed up with Bergman to form one of the nation's top doubles teams, winning the National Clay Courts and advancing to the NCAA quarterfinals.
In 1999-2000, his first full season at the helm, Fleishman guided Wake Forest to a school record 24 wins, finishing with an unprecedented 24-3 mark. The team also swept through its league competition with a perfect 8-0 record, another first for the Deacon program. Included in that ACC sweep was a 4-3 victory over Duke, which halted the Blue Devils' 116-match winning streak over ACC opponents. Wake Forest's performance in the regular season earned Fleishman ACC Coach of the Year honors.
The success of the 2000 squad continued well into the postseason, as the Demon Deacons made their seventh consecutive appearance in the NCAA team tournament, advancing to the quarterfinals. Three Deacons - Bergman, Bielik and Adria Engel - earned All-America status. WFU also garnered its first ACC Player of the Year honor, as Adria Engel captured the award in addition to ACC and ITA National Rookie of the Year honors.
After being named head coach during the 1999 season, Fleishman directed the team to a 10-5 record and an appearance in the second round of the NCAA regional tournament in Columbia, SC. Also in that year, Mariel Verban earned All-America honors after advancing to the quarterfinals of the NCAA singles championship. Bergman was named ACC Rookie of the Year, and three Deacons were named to the All-ACC team while two players captured ACC flight championships.
An assistant coach at Wake Forest from 1997-99, Fleishman took over the Deacon program on an interim basis in the spring of 1999 following the resignation of longtime head coach Lew Gerrard.
In his first two seasons at Wake Forest, Fleishman assisted Gerrard, who finished his career as the fourth all-time winningest coach in ACC women's tennis history. The duo guided the 1997 Deacon squad to a runner-up finish in the ACC Tournament and an appearance in the NCAA championship.
Prior to his arrival at Wake Forest, Fleishman served two seasons as an assistant coach at perennial women's tennis power, The College of William & Mary. While in Williamsburg, he helped guide the Tribe to two NCAA appearances and a No. 8 national ranking - the highest ranking in school history. Fleishman helped guide the career of three-time All-America Lauren Nikolaus, and was named ITA Eastern Regional Assistant Coach of the Year in 1997. During his time at William & Mary, he was co-director of the Nike Tennis Camp and tournament director for the ITA Collegiate Summer Circuit, in addition to serving as an adjunct professor in the kinesiology department at the College.
Before entering the college coaching ranks, Fleishman spent five years as a coach on the professional tour and as the junior programs coordinator at the Van der Meer Tennis Academy in Hilton Head, SC. In 1993 and 1994, he personally coached Grant Stafford and helped him climb 30 spots to No. 52 in the world rankings. Fleishman has coached at the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and many other ATP an tour events.
Before working at the Van der Meer Tennis Academy, Fleishman worked as an administrator/head coach of the area training center for the SCTA/USTA in Columbia, S.C.
Fleishman is a 1991 graduate of Christopher Newport, earning a bachelor's degree in Recreation and Tourism with a minor in Psychology. While a student, Fleishman served as the head boys' tennis coach at Hampton Roads Academy.
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| 1996 | William & Mary (assistant) | 20-8, 3-0 CAA | 1st Round |
| 1997 | William & Mary (assistant) | 23-7, 2-0 CAA | 2nd Round |
| 1998 | Wake Forest (assistant) | 18-9, 7-1 ACC | Quarterfinals |
| 1999 | Wake Forest | 16-11, 7-1 ACC | 2nd Round |
| 2000 | Wake Forest | 24-3, 8-0 ACC | Quarterfinals |
| 2001 | Wake Forest | 18-9, 7-1 ACC | Round of 16 |
| 2002 | Wake Forest | 24-6, 6-2 ACC | Quarterfinals |
| 2003 | Wake Forest | 4-22, 1-7 ACC | -- |
| 2004 | Wake Forest | 11-12, 3-5 ACC | 1st Round |
| TOTALS | Nine years overall (three as assistant | 90-56 (.616) | Eight NCAA Tournament Appearances |
