St. John's University Athletics
Men's Tennis
Pottish, Dillon
Dillon Pottish
- Title:
- Head Coach
- Email:
- pottishd@stjohns.edu
Dillon Pottish enters his sixth season as the head coach of the men’s tennis team after arriving at St. John's in August of 2018.
In his fifth season at the helm in 2022-23, Pottish guided the program to its seventh BIG EAST Championship and the second during his tenure. The head coach led a group of newcomers to an NCAA Tournament, earning an automatic bid after rolling through the conference tournament and eventually sweeping Butler in the BIG EAST Championship match, 4-0. The NCAA Tournament appearance marked the fifth in nine years for the Red Storm men's tennis program.
Overall, St. John's finished the 2022-23 campaign with an overall record of 20-6 in dual match play, the first 20-win season for the squad since 2016. The Red Storm finished incredibly strong tallying 11 wins its last 13 matches to end the year and compiled an undefeated record, 6-0, against BIG EAST opponents.
The men's tennis team garnered plenty of accolades this past season as Pottish and his staff were named the BIG EAST Coaching of the Year. Graduate student Diogo Marques was named BIG EAST Player of the Year and the conference tournament's most outstanding player. The Setubal, Portugal native was tabbed to all BIG EAST first team and was joined by teammate Carl Gustafsson. Additionally, Marques and doubles partner Axel Vila Antuna reached as high as no. 54 in the ITA National rankings.
In his fourth season at the helm, Pottish posted a 17-6 dual-match record, reached a third-straight BIG EAST Championship match and saw his players garner several honors and national rankings in 2021-22. During the fall slate, Axel Vila Antuna and Ignacio Garcia shined by making a run to the semifinals of the ITA Northeast Regionals in doubles play. The duo reached as high as no. 56 in the ITA rankings.
In the springtime, the Johnnies posted 17 wins en route to earning the top-seed in the 2022 BIG EAST Championship. The Red Storm advanced to its third-consecutive conference title match, moving past Villanova and Butler, before falling to DePaul in the final, 4-2. Three Red Storm players- Axel Vila Antuna (First Team), Ignacio Garcia (Second Team) and Carl Gustafsson (Second Team) earned all-conference honors.
During an altered 2021 campaign, the Johnnies posted a 16-2 record and finished runner-up at the BIG EAST Championships. The impressive record marked the best dual-match winning percentage (.889) since the 1982-83 campaign.
Following a narrow conference championship match loss to DePaul, 4-3, two Red Storm players were named All-BIG EAST selections. Ignacio Garcia earned a spot on the first team, while Louis-Nils Michel garnered second team recognition.
In 2020, Pottish mentored Aditya Vashistha, who reached the highest rankings of any player in St. John's history, checking in as high as 40 in the ITA rankings. The Bikaner, India native competed on the national stage, qualifying for the Oracle ITA Masters during the fall of 2019.
Pottish, a former four-time All-American, ITA National Player of the Year, and 2012 NCAA Singles Champion, has continued the winning tradition that St. John’s has established in the BIG EAST Conference, as well as the national level.
In his first season as head coach of the Red Storm’s men’s tennis program, Pottish led St. John’s (19-6) to its first BIG EAST Championship and NCAA Tournament berth since 2016. As a result, Andrei Crapcenco was named the 2019 BIG EAST Player of the Year and the St. John’s coaching staff was lauded as the BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year.
Pottish’s success continued in his second season at St. John’s (2019-20) where he guided the team to a 13-2 overall record (2-0 in BIG EAST play) and was on a five game winning streak before the season was halted due to COVID-19. The Johnnies two BIG EAST victories in 2019-20 came in dominant fashion, as they took down Xavier and Butler by 6-1 decisions.
Pottish joined St. John’s following a stint in Morningside Heights, where he served as the assistant coach for the Columbia women’s tennis team. With the Lions, Pottish assembled the third ranked recruiting class in the country, the best in program history, and helped the squad improve its win total by seven wins in 2018.
Prior to Columbia, Pottish held a similar title at Georgetown where the Long Island native assisted both the men’s and women’s programs for the Hoyas in 2016-17. Pottish helped assemble Georgetown's 2017 men's recruiting class, which was one of the best groups in school history and voted as the nation's No. 22 ranked recruiting class by tennisrecruiting.net. He also helped lead the Hoyas women's program to a 13-6 record. Pottish also served as hitting partner for Anna Taishvili, who ranked No. 50 in the WTA world rankings and advanced to the fourth round of the U.S. Open.
Before heading to the nation’s capital, Pottish served as the graduate assistant coach for the men's and women's program at NCAA Division III Emory University in Atlanta for two years from 2013-15. With his assistance, the Eagles advanced to the NCAA Division III quarterfinals in both seasons and he also had players appear in the NCAA Division III Singles Championship.
An accomplished player, Pottish won the NCAA Division III Singles National Championship in 2012 and finished as the national runner-up in 2011. In 2012, he led Emory to its third NCAA Division III Team National Championship in school history with an undefeated 25-0 record. During his career from 2008-12, Pottish was ranked No. 1 in the country as a sophomore, junior, and senior. He was named the ITA National Player of the Year in 2012 and compiled a school-record .874 career winning percentage (97-14).
Following his intercollegiate career, Pottish competed on the ATP World Tour for two years as well as playing club tennis in Germany and Switzerland.
Pottish earned his master’s degree in Sports Administration from Georgia State University in Atlanta with a perfect 4.0 GPA after completing his undergraduate degree from Emory.
In his fifth season at the helm in 2022-23, Pottish guided the program to its seventh BIG EAST Championship and the second during his tenure. The head coach led a group of newcomers to an NCAA Tournament, earning an automatic bid after rolling through the conference tournament and eventually sweeping Butler in the BIG EAST Championship match, 4-0. The NCAA Tournament appearance marked the fifth in nine years for the Red Storm men's tennis program.
Overall, St. John's finished the 2022-23 campaign with an overall record of 20-6 in dual match play, the first 20-win season for the squad since 2016. The Red Storm finished incredibly strong tallying 11 wins its last 13 matches to end the year and compiled an undefeated record, 6-0, against BIG EAST opponents.
The men's tennis team garnered plenty of accolades this past season as Pottish and his staff were named the BIG EAST Coaching of the Year. Graduate student Diogo Marques was named BIG EAST Player of the Year and the conference tournament's most outstanding player. The Setubal, Portugal native was tabbed to all BIG EAST first team and was joined by teammate Carl Gustafsson. Additionally, Marques and doubles partner Axel Vila Antuna reached as high as no. 54 in the ITA National rankings.
In his fourth season at the helm, Pottish posted a 17-6 dual-match record, reached a third-straight BIG EAST Championship match and saw his players garner several honors and national rankings in 2021-22. During the fall slate, Axel Vila Antuna and Ignacio Garcia shined by making a run to the semifinals of the ITA Northeast Regionals in doubles play. The duo reached as high as no. 56 in the ITA rankings.
In the springtime, the Johnnies posted 17 wins en route to earning the top-seed in the 2022 BIG EAST Championship. The Red Storm advanced to its third-consecutive conference title match, moving past Villanova and Butler, before falling to DePaul in the final, 4-2. Three Red Storm players- Axel Vila Antuna (First Team), Ignacio Garcia (Second Team) and Carl Gustafsson (Second Team) earned all-conference honors.
During an altered 2021 campaign, the Johnnies posted a 16-2 record and finished runner-up at the BIG EAST Championships. The impressive record marked the best dual-match winning percentage (.889) since the 1982-83 campaign.
Following a narrow conference championship match loss to DePaul, 4-3, two Red Storm players were named All-BIG EAST selections. Ignacio Garcia earned a spot on the first team, while Louis-Nils Michel garnered second team recognition.
In 2020, Pottish mentored Aditya Vashistha, who reached the highest rankings of any player in St. John's history, checking in as high as 40 in the ITA rankings. The Bikaner, India native competed on the national stage, qualifying for the Oracle ITA Masters during the fall of 2019.
Pottish, a former four-time All-American, ITA National Player of the Year, and 2012 NCAA Singles Champion, has continued the winning tradition that St. John’s has established in the BIG EAST Conference, as well as the national level.
In his first season as head coach of the Red Storm’s men’s tennis program, Pottish led St. John’s (19-6) to its first BIG EAST Championship and NCAA Tournament berth since 2016. As a result, Andrei Crapcenco was named the 2019 BIG EAST Player of the Year and the St. John’s coaching staff was lauded as the BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year.
Pottish’s success continued in his second season at St. John’s (2019-20) where he guided the team to a 13-2 overall record (2-0 in BIG EAST play) and was on a five game winning streak before the season was halted due to COVID-19. The Johnnies two BIG EAST victories in 2019-20 came in dominant fashion, as they took down Xavier and Butler by 6-1 decisions.
Pottish joined St. John’s following a stint in Morningside Heights, where he served as the assistant coach for the Columbia women’s tennis team. With the Lions, Pottish assembled the third ranked recruiting class in the country, the best in program history, and helped the squad improve its win total by seven wins in 2018.
Prior to Columbia, Pottish held a similar title at Georgetown where the Long Island native assisted both the men’s and women’s programs for the Hoyas in 2016-17. Pottish helped assemble Georgetown's 2017 men's recruiting class, which was one of the best groups in school history and voted as the nation's No. 22 ranked recruiting class by tennisrecruiting.net. He also helped lead the Hoyas women's program to a 13-6 record. Pottish also served as hitting partner for Anna Taishvili, who ranked No. 50 in the WTA world rankings and advanced to the fourth round of the U.S. Open.
Before heading to the nation’s capital, Pottish served as the graduate assistant coach for the men's and women's program at NCAA Division III Emory University in Atlanta for two years from 2013-15. With his assistance, the Eagles advanced to the NCAA Division III quarterfinals in both seasons and he also had players appear in the NCAA Division III Singles Championship.
An accomplished player, Pottish won the NCAA Division III Singles National Championship in 2012 and finished as the national runner-up in 2011. In 2012, he led Emory to its third NCAA Division III Team National Championship in school history with an undefeated 25-0 record. During his career from 2008-12, Pottish was ranked No. 1 in the country as a sophomore, junior, and senior. He was named the ITA National Player of the Year in 2012 and compiled a school-record .874 career winning percentage (97-14).
Following his intercollegiate career, Pottish competed on the ATP World Tour for two years as well as playing club tennis in Germany and Switzerland.
Pottish earned his master’s degree in Sports Administration from Georgia State University in Atlanta with a perfect 4.0 GPA after completing his undergraduate degree from Emory.
Men's Tennis NCAA Selection Show
Tuesday, April 30
