Women's Tennis
Engineer, Piyanart
Piyanart Engineer
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
- Email:
- piyanart.engineer@usm.edu
- Phone:
- 504-451-9158
Southern Miss Director of Athletics Jeremy McClain announced on August 11 the hiring of Piyanart Engineer as women's tennis coach, becoming the 10th head coach in the program's history.
Engineer spent the last five seasons as the assistant coach in the program before being promoted. She helped the Golden Eagles to a 62-20 mark with five consecutive winning seasons and an impressive 37-3 record at the Southern Miss Tennis Complex. Southern Miss has not lost a home tennis match since April 4, 2018, and maintains an undefeated 30-match winning streak at home. The Southern Miss women's tennis program earned its second-highest ITA Southern Regional ranking ever, finishing No. 8 in the final poll.
The Golden Eagles finished 13-5, including a 2-1 mark in league play in with Engineer on staff last season. They claimed wins against Conference USA foes UTSA and LA Tech. Southern Miss won just under 70 percent of its singles contests and won 33 of 49 doubles contests. On top of the team honors, Sarah Medik and Monique Burton finished No. 10 in the Southern Regional double's rankings. The veteran pair finished 8-6, including a win over Mississippi State's then-No. 39 doubles players Magda Adaloglou and Chloe Cirotte. Medik and Burton downed the No. 1 Bulldog doubles duo, 7-5, marking a pivotal win for the pair early in the season. Adaloglou and Cirotte finished ranked No. 4 Southern Regional doubles rankings.
Engineer recruited Sarah Medik from Austria who played in the top spots and defeated Sunbelt Conference Player of the Year from South Alabama. She was instrumental in recruiting Suhana Das, #1 from Malaysia. The women's team earned ITA Academic Team Honors and four student athletes were named ITA Scholar Athletes. Monique Burton named NCAA Woman of the Year Finalist
Prior to Southern Miss, Engineer spent 10 seasons at the University of New Orleans as the assistant men's and women's tennis coach. While at UNO, Engineer helped coach and recruit, while also managing travel and scheduling for both teams. Engineer recruited and brought in No. 1 singles player Trang Dao, who finished 14-4 and 8-1 in the Southland Conference. In 2016, her women's team recorded their best finish with a 15-6 record and a career high No. 10 ranking in the ITA Southern Region. That season continued to be a success for the Privateers as the team maintained a 3.53 GPA and placed all seven student-athletes on the Southland Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll. The 2014 season featured both the men's and women's teams receiving the ITA All-Academic team award. The women's team finished with a 3.56 GPA, the highest among all women's team at UNO that season. In this same season, Engineer received UNO's five years of service award.
Her first five seasons at UNO, Engineer helped the men's team finish the season as the runner ups in the Southland Conference Championships in 2013, produced wins over top 100 ranked teams in 2012 and 2011, produced a team who defeated No. 6 LSU and posted a No. 36 doubles ranking in 2010, and coached a No. 75 ranked men's team in 2009.
Prior to UNO, Engineer was the Director of Operations at the Tennis Academy of Asia in Thailand for four years. The Tennis Academy of Asia is the largest International tennis academy for elite players competing nationally and internationally. While in Thailand, Engineer helped coordinate events between the Thailand Tennis Federation and the Tennis Academy of Asia, managed workshops, organized finances for recruitment and launched the opening ceremony of the academy.
"I look forward to continuing my working relationship with Coach Nui," said Senior Associate AD for Olympic Sports and SWA Sonya Varnell. "I am excited for her to be leading our program and expect her to continue to build on our solid foundation."
From 2002 to 2006, Engineer served as the Head Coach for Bangkok Patana International School where she coached over 250 students who traveled to other schools in Asia for competition. In 2001, she was the head coach at the Capitol Cub and was responsible for organizing and implementing a complete tennis program for both adults and children.
And from 1999 to 2000, Engineer was the National Women's Team coach training the Top Junior Girls, was the coach for East Asian Junior Championships held by ITF where two players help top 20 and 25 ITF World Junior rankings.
Over a 13-year period, Engineer played extensively at the national level, winning a gold medal in the National Junior Games and a silver medal in the Thailand University Games. A 1992 graduate of Thammasat University, in Thailand, Engineer earned a bachelor's degree in Law before she earned a master's degree in Communications from Sripatum University in Thailand.
Engineer is married to the Southern Miss men's head tennis coach, Zubin Engineer.
Engineer spent the last five seasons as the assistant coach in the program before being promoted. She helped the Golden Eagles to a 62-20 mark with five consecutive winning seasons and an impressive 37-3 record at the Southern Miss Tennis Complex. Southern Miss has not lost a home tennis match since April 4, 2018, and maintains an undefeated 30-match winning streak at home. The Southern Miss women's tennis program earned its second-highest ITA Southern Regional ranking ever, finishing No. 8 in the final poll.
The Golden Eagles finished 13-5, including a 2-1 mark in league play in with Engineer on staff last season. They claimed wins against Conference USA foes UTSA and LA Tech. Southern Miss won just under 70 percent of its singles contests and won 33 of 49 doubles contests. On top of the team honors, Sarah Medik and Monique Burton finished No. 10 in the Southern Regional double's rankings. The veteran pair finished 8-6, including a win over Mississippi State's then-No. 39 doubles players Magda Adaloglou and Chloe Cirotte. Medik and Burton downed the No. 1 Bulldog doubles duo, 7-5, marking a pivotal win for the pair early in the season. Adaloglou and Cirotte finished ranked No. 4 Southern Regional doubles rankings.
Engineer recruited Sarah Medik from Austria who played in the top spots and defeated Sunbelt Conference Player of the Year from South Alabama. She was instrumental in recruiting Suhana Das, #1 from Malaysia. The women's team earned ITA Academic Team Honors and four student athletes were named ITA Scholar Athletes. Monique Burton named NCAA Woman of the Year Finalist
Prior to Southern Miss, Engineer spent 10 seasons at the University of New Orleans as the assistant men's and women's tennis coach. While at UNO, Engineer helped coach and recruit, while also managing travel and scheduling for both teams. Engineer recruited and brought in No. 1 singles player Trang Dao, who finished 14-4 and 8-1 in the Southland Conference. In 2016, her women's team recorded their best finish with a 15-6 record and a career high No. 10 ranking in the ITA Southern Region. That season continued to be a success for the Privateers as the team maintained a 3.53 GPA and placed all seven student-athletes on the Southland Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll. The 2014 season featured both the men's and women's teams receiving the ITA All-Academic team award. The women's team finished with a 3.56 GPA, the highest among all women's team at UNO that season. In this same season, Engineer received UNO's five years of service award.
Her first five seasons at UNO, Engineer helped the men's team finish the season as the runner ups in the Southland Conference Championships in 2013, produced wins over top 100 ranked teams in 2012 and 2011, produced a team who defeated No. 6 LSU and posted a No. 36 doubles ranking in 2010, and coached a No. 75 ranked men's team in 2009.
Prior to UNO, Engineer was the Director of Operations at the Tennis Academy of Asia in Thailand for four years. The Tennis Academy of Asia is the largest International tennis academy for elite players competing nationally and internationally. While in Thailand, Engineer helped coordinate events between the Thailand Tennis Federation and the Tennis Academy of Asia, managed workshops, organized finances for recruitment and launched the opening ceremony of the academy.
"I look forward to continuing my working relationship with Coach Nui," said Senior Associate AD for Olympic Sports and SWA Sonya Varnell. "I am excited for her to be leading our program and expect her to continue to build on our solid foundation."
From 2002 to 2006, Engineer served as the Head Coach for Bangkok Patana International School where she coached over 250 students who traveled to other schools in Asia for competition. In 2001, she was the head coach at the Capitol Cub and was responsible for organizing and implementing a complete tennis program for both adults and children.
And from 1999 to 2000, Engineer was the National Women's Team coach training the Top Junior Girls, was the coach for East Asian Junior Championships held by ITF where two players help top 20 and 25 ITF World Junior rankings.
Over a 13-year period, Engineer played extensively at the national level, winning a gold medal in the National Junior Games and a silver medal in the Thailand University Games. A 1992 graduate of Thammasat University, in Thailand, Engineer earned a bachelor's degree in Law before she earned a master's degree in Communications from Sripatum University in Thailand.
Engineer is married to the Southern Miss men's head tennis coach, Zubin Engineer.
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