Tran Bringing a Competitive Nature to Her Post
On the court -- and off -- she plays to win
The program has been in existence for nearly 50 years. Over the span, Colorado State’s women’s tennis program has recorded 10 winning seasons.
The most recent came in 2019. The time before that dates back to 2005. The Rams have never won a conference championship, and over the course of their membership in the Mountain West, have never advanced beyond their second match in the championship bracket of the conference tournament.
That’s not how Mai-Ly Tran’s brain operates.
Carmen Palumbo played for her at Drake. On road trips, she appreciated Tran would try to show the team the area where they traveled and also made them team-bonding experiences. Like a trip to Top Golf. Tran didn’t just sit back and watch her players have fun. She was driving balls with them, splitting the team in half and she expected her side to win.
Which they did.
“She’s very competitive, which is hilarious. She definitely wanted to win,” Palumbo said. “Whether it’s Top Golf or bowling, she was always competitive. She played with us on the court quite a bit, too. She’d play doubles, and there was no mercy. She still has it. She still has her skills.”
Also the same drive. She had it as a player at Cal State Fullerton, even as an assistant coach there, where she worked her first year for free. She guided Drake on a path of improvement, which led the team to the NCAA Tournament this past season.
Tran knows what Colorado State program has done in the past. The future – her future – does not look the same. Will it be easy? No, but she comes to Fort Collins completely undeterred.
“I love the underdog mentality, and I think that makes the challenge even more exciting,” she said. “It’s never been done before. That’s why it’s great. It’s room for opportunity. Colorado State has never been known to be successful in the Mountain West, and it is competitive in the conference. It’s still going to be hard, but I think that’s what should drive us to work harder.
“The girls on the team, some of the reason they came here is because it’s a competitive conference. That’s the way it is for me. If you’re a competitive person, you want to play against the best teams. I think this is a great spot and a program that can do that, but it’s going to take a lot. I think pursuing that is going to be the greatest journey of it all.”
Being a college head coach was not a path she initially set her compass to follow. Eventually, the idea started to grow on her, initially running girls and boys programs at a high school. Then she moved on to running an NAIA program.
As a former player, she was on the interview committee when her alma mater was looking for a new coach, and while the program didn’t have money for an assistant, Tran missed working with athletes and building relationships on and off the court.
So Dianne Matias was more than happy to have Tran around at the perfect price.
“Funny story, when I started at Fullerton, she was a volunteer,” Matias said.
“I forgot about that,” Tran said. “I probably tried to forget that, honestly.”
Yet to Matias, who still heads the Titans, she was the optimal fit, and someone who became not only a trusted assistant but a dear friend. It wasn’t just her ability to teach the game, but her ideas to help grow the program.
Tran, CSU’s first Asian-American head coach, helped initiate more summer camps and worked to bring former players back into the program.
“She’s someone who thinks out of the box. When I was with her, she didn’t push boundaries, but would say, have you ever thought of this?” Matias said. “She’s someone who looks at things that have been done in the past, but she’s always looking for ideas to make things better.”
Tran appreciated the growth Matias’ leadership allowed her. She was involved with all aspects of the program, which expanded her understanding of everything involved with not only creating success on the court, but building a following and support to help sustain it all.
Matias was a tireless worker, which only drove Tran to match her. She is competitive, after all. For her, it created the perfect working and learning environment.
“The biggest takeaway was her work ethic and how much she wanted to win and to give her student-athletes the best experience, whatever it took,” Tran said. “If it was hours and hours on the court, or hours and hours recruiting, for me, I felt prepared for the Drake position because I learned all the ins and outs. She treated me as an equal and a partner and was able to give me the time to take initiative with the program and make it our own.”
I can’t be in this job unless I’m competitive. I think it starts with leading by example.Mai-Ly Tran
It gave her the confidence to apply for the Drake opening after just three years of being an assistant. From all of her experiences with coaches, she understood what she wanted to carry forward, things to definitely avoid and blended it all with her own personality and push.
At Drake, they won a regular season championship and a conference title, and she earned Coach of the Year honors in the Missouri Valley Conference. The lessons she’s learned along the way will be carried forward, making her pillars of the program easy to see.
Her vision will not be limited to the court. She wants to reengage former players and encourage them to be proud of the program which impacted their lives, come back and meet the current crop carrying the flag and support their efforts. She will reach out to the campus and Fort Collins community, which she feels will support a successful program.
Most definitely, she expects the Rams to win, which will require a specific path to follow.
“Thinking about the foundation, for me, it’s caring about the program. Caring about the student-athletes, it’s caring about our families and everyone at Colorado State and committing ourselves and being dedicated to the program and doing everything we can to be our best, then make everyone around us the best,” Tran said. “And to have fun doing it.
“We’re going to set some goals and be excellent at everything we want to do. I think with this new group, I want to instill how I want great people to be a part of this program. We are going to develop ourselves as people and be a better person when we leave than where we started.”
For Palumbo, it’s a character trait of a coach some student-athletes don’t appreciate right away. They are focused on starting their career and getting better as athletes, with the understanding of the bigger picture coming into focus as their career progresses.
Tran was there for her from the beginning, and she was there through the end – even beyond – penning references for Palumbo as she pursued further education.
“They’re not only going to gain a great tennis coach, but a great friend and a great mentor,” she said. “Not only is she going to be there on the court for you, but she’ll be there definitely off the court for you. This is her life, making sure her tennis players are gaining the best college experience and being the best woman they can be, so she’s going to do everything she can do off the court, too.
“It happened for me within the first couple of months. My first couple of months I started experiencing an injury, and she wasn’t just worried about the player side of me and how she could get me back on the court and in the lineup, but she was also worried about how was I mentally doing off the court. Injuries take a toll, and she wanted to make sure I was doing well.”
Tran’s belief is she has to care about the players she brings in as people, not just to prepare them for life, but to have them ready to compete on the court. She will expect her team to be prepared for each and every match and carry the expectation they will be successful when the day is done.
She will not be the only new aspect of the program this season. Only two players return from last year’s roster (Tracy Guo and Anastasiia Kotsyuba), and New Zealand freshman Sarah Weekley will finally be on campus after redshirting last year. The rest of the lineup will be filled out by the addition of five transfers, three of whom are graduate students.
The makeup will lead to turnover next year, as well, but in the meantime, she is out to make her debut roster her own. She didn’t recruit any of them initially, so she’s doing so now, to start to build a chemistry with them and help set a base for a team to develop when practice begins.
“I think it starts with my expectation for them and make sure they’re on board. If we meet those expectations, great things will happen, but it’s going to take a lot of discipline,” Tran said. “Discipline in practice and training and making sure we get the most out of every training session. We have to know each other as teammates and coaches, start that relationship and continue to communicate and set goals and make sure every single day we’re putting in the work to meet those goals.
“I need to get them excited about what my vision is for this program. They still have a choice to be on this team. I was excited when I met with them. That’s the best part of this job, to work with these student-athletes who all have a path who brought them here and what goals they have for this year. I’m learning those, but even in that first meeting, I knew here was something special. They got me even more excited for the job.”
One which gives her a chance to do something which has never been done. There are so many steps which can be taken along the way. The Rams haven’t won in the first round of the conference tournament since 2013. The only conference semifinals appearance was in 2001. Reaching the championship match would be a major step.
This is what Tran signed up for, and Matias feels her former assistant is wired for this type of task.
“She takes on challenges head on. Mai-Ly doesn’t let challenges phase her,” Matias said. “She works hard, puts the time in and is diligent with the effort. She’s not afraid to go after big things.”
When she steps on the court with the Rams to play a few sets of doubles, they best be prepared. Whatever the contest is, they best not go in with a casual attitude. If she’s going to expect her teams to win, she has to set an example.
The essence of coaching is teaching, so they will never see her back down. Even in a bowling alley for a fun team gathering.
“I can’t be in this job unless I’m competitive. I think it starts with leading by example,” Tran said. “With my expectation for this team, and we need the right people. I was incredibly lucky to inherit a team that is talented and has potential. I will lead by example by expecting them to win. That’s my belief in them, and working hard every single day to achieve that success, making sure we’re as prepared as possible and expect ourselves to win every single match when we step out on the court.”
The history of the program is what has already been written. A new chapter is approaching, and Tran’s outlook is to see the script make an abrupt plot twist. She can’t change what has been, but she’s not the type of person who is fine with a status quo of that nature.
She’s excited, because she has the opportunity to have people see Colorado State women’s tennis in a brand new light.