Women's Tennis | 12/18/2020 12:00:00 PM

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Rochester Institute of Technology Executive Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Lou Spiotti Jr. announced Raphaela Jann has been named head men's and women's tennis coach for the Tigers.
 
Jann has played and coached both internationally and in the United States, most recently serving as a graduate assistant coach at Division II Tusculum University (Tenn.) with the men's and women's programs.
 
"We are thrilled to have Raphaela accept our offer to join our Athletics Team," said Spiotti. "Given her rich playing background and international experience as a teacher and coach of the game of tennis, we feel nothing but fortunate to be able to bring her to RIT. She will be an incredible asset to our program and to the University."
 
A native of Hamburg, Germany, Jann is a German Tennis Federation Certified "C-Tennis" coach with over 18 years of coaching experience.
 
"I'm very excited to join such a prestigious institution and work with both teams," said Jann. "I especially want to thank Mr. Spiotti and am grateful for the opportunity. RIT has an amazing reputation of pursuing both academic and athletic excellence. I look forward to joining the coaching staff and making a difference. I am convinced it will be a great place to work and I cannot wait to see what we can accomplish."
 
Jann helped mentor the first two women's All-Americans in program history during her time at Tusculum. Sisters Annie and Caitlin McCullough were ranked as high as second nationally in the Oracle/ITA Division II national doubles rankings during a season which included a runner-up finish at the ITA Division II Cup. Jann also saw Annie land singles All-America recognition on her way to being named one of nine finalists for the 2020 NCAA Woman of the Year Award.
 
Fluent in five languages (German, English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish), Jann has an extensive sports broadcasting background. She served as an on-air reporter and producer for Eurosport in Paris for seven years, covering numerous world-class leagues and events including the German Bundesliga, the Women's World Cup, the UEFA Champions League and all four tennis Grand Slams during her career.
 
Jann's tennis career includes serving as team captain of Tennis Club de Clamart and TC Issy les Moulineaux, in Paris, leading her teams to promotion twice. She also spent two summers as a tennis professional/chaperone for "Tennis Europe," leading American teenagers on a playing tour across multiple European countries.
 
A 2009 graduate of Lipscomb University in Tennessee, Jann was a two-time Atlantic Sun All-Academic Team honoree while playing No. 1 singles and doubles for the Division-I Bisons. She completed a double-major in political science and mass communication with a concentration in broadcast journalism before earning a master's degree in multimedia sports journalism in 2010 at Universidad Europea de Madrid in Spain. Jann also completed an MBA at Tusculum this past summer.