Ilene Weintraub

Ilene Weintraub begins her third season as the head coach of the Pirates’ women’s tennis program. Last season, she led Seton Hall to its second consecutive BIG EAST Tournament appearance and guided the Pirates to a 12-12 overall record, and a 4-6 mark in conference play. In her first season at Seton Hall, Weintraub stepped in to make an immediate impact. She became the fifth coach in Seton Hall women’s tennis history when she was hired to guide the program on Dec. 14, 2004, which was after the 2004-05 season had already begun. However, she wasted no time in improving the team, leading the Pirates to a 14-5 spring dual match record, 7-2 in the BIG EAST, and a sixth place finish at the BIG EAST Tournament. It was the first time that the Pirates had been to the postseason since the 1999-00 season. With Weintraub at the helm, the Pirates posted key victories over in-state rival Rutgers, 6-1, and over St. John’s, 4-3. The Red Storm went on to finish third in the conference tournament. Seton Hall’s seven conference victories were the most since 2000; the Pirates also topped Georgetown, Providence, Pittsburgh, Connecticut and Villanova. In the summer of 2004, Weintraub bolstered her already impressive resume, serving as the head tennis pro at the Old Field Club in Setauket, N.Y. Weintraub came to Seton Hall with outstanding credentials. Prior to arriving in South Orange, Weintraub coached at Columbia for two years, serving as an assistant coach from the fall of 2002 until 2004. In addition to her coaching experience at Columbia, she has also worked as the head assistant tennis pro at Century Country Club in Purchase, N.Y., and as an assistant tennis pro at Willowbrook Swim and Tennis Club in Mt. Kisco, N.Y., and West Side Tennis Club in Forrest Hills, N.Y. A letterwinner in tennis at Columbia, Weintraub was a two-time team captain for the Lions in 2001 and 2002 and an All-Ivy League Second Team selection in doubles in 1999 and 2000. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in theater from Columbia in 2002 and presently serves as the artistic director of Downstage Eye Music Theater, a non-profit, off-Broadway theater company. A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., Weintraub earned the prestigious Pegasus Award recognizing New York City’s top high school athlete in 1998. She now resides in Manhattan.