Silver City, N.M. - Head Tennis Coach Alex Hunt announced Tuesday morning the hiring of Joshua Lopez. Lopez will serve as the men's and women's tennis programs' Graduate Assistant.

Lopez played the last four years (2018-2022) at Hardin-Simmons University and was Coach Hunt's teammate for one year. " I am certain Josh is going to help us continue to rise up through the rankings with his experiences he's had doing that exact thing as a player," said Hunt. "He knows what it's like to win a team conference championship and go to nationals. He just did it last year as a senior."

Hunt and Lopez have known each other for over a decade now, as they both were born and raised in Odessa, TX, and had many of the same great coaches, leading them to have similar tennis philosophies.

"I am very excited to be getting the chance to go to WNMU and be the GA under Alex Hunt. I have known Alex for several years now and we have a strong relationship that transfers over to the court," said Lopez. " We have the same tennis mindset and have the same goal of contending for conference titles. I can't wait to get down to Silver City to get started."

At Legacy High School, Lopez was a two-time regional qualifier, was the No. 1 on his team for three consecutive years, and was at 16s and 18s USTA Texas Super Champ Level. 

In his career at HSU, he was in the singles and doubles lineup all four years, where he was a three-time Academic All-ASC and named ASC West Sportsmanship Athlete of the Year. In 2021, he was First Team All-ASC and All-ASC West at No. 2 Doubles and in 2022 he was First Team All-ASC in Singles and Doubles, as well as First Team All-ASC West in Singles and Doubles. Topping off the 2022 year, Lopez was a part of the ASC Men's Tennis Team Champions.

At HSU, Lopez earned a degree in Exercise Science. At WNMU, he will look to earn his masters in Interdisciplinary Studies in Kinesiology, Psychology, and Educational Leadership.

"I'm excited to have a guy come on board here at WNMU Tennis who I'm so familiar with and confident in. The new era of WNMU Tennis is here and we continue to get stronger" explains Hunt.

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Western New Mexico University is a member of the NCAA Division II, and the Lone Star Conference (LSC). For additional information regarding Mustang Athletics, visit www.wnmumustangs.com; visit wnmu.edu for more information about Western New Mexico University. Follow the Mustangs on social media: @WNMUathletics (Twitter & Instagram).