Southeast says it won't renew Ryan's contract

Donna Ryan will not return to Southeast Missouri State University as its women's tennis coach because her contract was not renewed, the school announced Tuesday.

Ryan coached the team for five years and finished with a 16-64 record. Her best season was in 1998 when, while interim head coach, the Otahkians finished 6-8 and were sixth in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament. She was hired as the program's coach at the end of the 1998 season.

Ryan said she was "shocked and surprised" by the school's decision, which she said was made several days before it was announced in a news release Tuesday.

"This came totally out of the blue," she said. "I felt like I'd learned a lot about what to do and what was going on. I was hired with no collegiate coaching experience with the understanding that I'd learn on the job. I felt like I'd conquered a lot of things.

"We had a couple of really good players coming back next year. I was looking forward to it. I'm disappointed now that I won't be able to finish what I started.'

In the seasons since Ryan's first 6-8 season, the team has finished 0-11, 3-15 and 5-13. The Otahkians were 2-17 this year.

"The records were bad, but we had so many injuries and the recruiting aspect was difficult. But the bottom line with coaches is that if you don't win, you're gone."

Athletic director Don Kaverman said the school will conduct a nationwide search for her replacement.

"We just feel we want to start in a new direction," Kaverman said.

Ryan has been the director of tennis at Universal Health and Fitness Center since 1990.