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Pete Kirkwood is in his 14th year as head coach of the UC Santa Barbara women's tennis program. During his tenure, the Gauchos have found success at the conference and national level under Kirkwood, earning Big West Conference honors and national rankings.
In 2007, the Gauchos battled through an injury-plagued year, finishing 10-11 overall and 4-3 in the Big West Conference. In 2006, the Gauchos finished with a 13-9 overall record, a Big West mark of 5-2 and a No. 70 national ranking. In 2005, UCSB bounced back from a subpar 2004 campaign with a 15-9 overall record, a 5-2 mark in the Big West and a fourth-place league tournament finish. In addition, in 2006, Marielle Gruenig earned First Team All-Big West honors and in the process she became one of just a handful of players to earn First Team honors three times. In 2003, Uzma Khan earned Big West Player of the Year honors after becoming the first UCSB player to go undefeated at 24-0 in dual matches. In 2002, the Gauchos struggled through a tough team schedule but found success at the No. 1 and 2 singles spots where Uzma Khan and Cindy Ammann combined for a 48-8 record and earned All-Big West First Team honors. In 1999, Kirkwood orchestrated one of the biggest turnarounds in program history. The Gauchos finished 1999 with a 20-7 record after recording only four wins in each of the previous two seasons. UCSB was the No. 1 seed going into the 1999 Big West Championship and the Gauchos' No. 1 player Cindy Ammann was named Player of the Tournament.
Kirkwood served as interim coach in 1995 and was named head coach in 1996. He led the 1996 Gauchos to their sixth straight Big West Conference title. His team also won the 1995 Big West title and he was named co-Big West Coach of the Year.
In 1996, UCSB's No. 1 singles player Jean Okada advanced to the round of 16 at the NCAA Championships, earning All-American honors. The Gauchos finished the 1996 season ranked 37th in the nation. Okada finished the year ranked 30th while the doubles team of Kelly Spencer and Amelia White finished the season ranked 17th nationally.
In 1995, Kirkwood guided the Spencer-White doubles tandem to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championships and in doing so, they were the first Gauchos to earn NCAA All-American status.
Kirkwood served as an assistant coach for four years prior to becoming head coach and was a major part of UCSB's rise on the national scene. In each of his four years as an assistant coach, the Gauchos won the Big West Conference Championship.
Kirkwood has served as an instructor in the Exercise and Sports Studies Department at UCSB for 14 years. He also has taught locally at the Cathedral Oaks Club.
Kirkwood, a Goleta, Calif., native, began his own tennis career at Santa Barbara City College where he earned First Team All-Western States Conference honors in 1980 and 1981. He attended Cal State Bakersfield and was First Team All-CCAA in 1983. He was also a member of the Cal State Bakersfield NCAA Division II National Championship runner-up squad in 1982.
Kirkwood received a bachelor's degree in physical education from Cal State Bakersfield in 1984.
