Andres Carrasco enters his first year as volunteer assistant coach. The Wildcat standout brings his leadership and experience to the team.
"It is great to have him as a coach because he was a former player for us," said head coach Tad Berkowitz. "He understands what we want as coaches and also has a goood understanding of what it takes to be a top Pac-12 student athlete."
In his time at Arizona, Carrasco tied teammate Jason Zafiros for most singles wins in both the 2008-09 (13) and 2009-10 (18) seasons. His longest singles winning streak came in the 2008-09 season with seven consecutive victories beginning against New Mexico State University and ending with then No. 27 Washington. Carrasco also earned Pac-10 awards including Pac-10 All-Academic Honorable Mention in 2009-10 and Second Team Pac-10 All-Academic in 2008-09. He was the only Wildcat to advance to the quarterfinals of the Pac-10 Championships Singles Flight in the 2008-09 season.
The Barcelona, Spain native's most memorable moment as a Wildcat came in his sophomore season when he upset then No. 127 Richard Wire of Stanford.
"I have so many extraordinary memories but if I have to choose one, it would be when I clinched against Stanford. Those 20 seconds I realized I won and the whole team was sprinting towards me to celebrate. It was unforgettable," Carrasco said.
Carrasco has an undying love for Arizona that has led him to return as a coach after graduating in 2011. "It means absolutely everything [to be a Wildcat]. This school has given me everything I ever dreamed of. I am so honored and proud to be a Wildcat and will always be thankful to everyone who made this possible."
