Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Bailey-Duvall encouraged by Raider potential
5/3/2020 12:01:00 PM | Women's Tennis
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Tayo Bailey-Duvall's first year as Middle Tennessee's women's tennis coach was a learning experience in more ways than one.
Though her second season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all signs are pointing to the program being on an upwards trajectory.
Bailey-Duvall was hired as the 11th coach in program history in August of 2018. She had spent the previous six years as the head coach at her alma mater, Butler, where the Bulldogs won a Big East Tournament match in four of her last five seasons. Additionally, her program earned NCAA Public Recognition Awards every year for ranking in the top 10% of their sport based on multi-year Academic Progress Rates.
Indianapolis and the Butler campus grew to be a second home for Bailey-Duvall, a Chicago native. As a player there, she was a three-time first team all-conference nominee. She finished her career with a 74-46 all-time singles record and helped the team to three appearances in the conference tournament final. She graduated in 2006 with a degree in biology.
After graduation, Bailey-Duvall was an assistant coach for two seasons at Butler before playing professionally for four years at the Goldfine-Smatt International Tennis Academy in Hallandale Beach, Florida. She returned as the head coach at Butler in 2012.
It understandably would've taken a special opportunity for Bailey-Duvall to leave her alma mater, where she'd already had success as a young coach. But, that chance came in the form of the Blue Raiders in 2018.
"Butler really is a second home to me … but the thing that really encouraged me to move to MT were the resources are different here," she said. "Speaking to Chris Massaro, I felt like he cared about every team, and that goes a long way. Having a good AD who is supportive was really key to me making the move."
Bailey-Duvall's first year at MT didn't have as many victories as she'd hoped for, at least to begin with.
The Blue Raiders started 1-6 before turning things around and winning five of their final eight matches to finish the season 11-13. They advanced to the second round of the Conference USA Tournament before falling to No. 2 seed Rice.
It was a year full of learning experiences for Bailey-Duvall both on the court and off it. Little did she know how much more learning she'd have left to do.
"It was my first spring season with a new team, and some of the girls were still trying to decide if they could trust me or if they could buy into my coaching philosophy," she said. "It was a bit of a mental tug of war."
With her second year in Murfreesboro starting, Bailey-Duvall and her husband, Brett Duvall, announced she would coach this spring with a partner. The couple is pregnant with their first baby, due in the first week of May.
As if coaching and being pregnant weren't tough enough, the couple also tried their hand at opening a business in August, the Morning Brew coffeehouse, in downtown Murfreesboro. They've since had to close the doors because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bailey-Duvall expected to coach this season right up until it was time for her little one to be born. However, just like with the Morning Brew, circumstances changed.
Middle Tennessee again got off to a slow start before turning things around quickly, rattling off a six-match winning streak before the NCAA was forced to cancel the rest of the spring sports season because of COVID-19. The team held a 9-5 record.
The abrupt end to the season was painful for Bailey-Duvall and the Blue Raiders, especially the young team's two seniors. Lidia Burrows was creeping up the program's career singles wins list with 74, putting her fourth and two behind third, and fellow senior Marta Peris Herrero had just reached 111 combined singles and doubles victories in her career.
The team had also reached an ITA ranking of 83 nationally, just eight places off their goal to start the season.
"We were playing really well and things were clicking," Bailey-Duvall said. "Lidia went on a good streak there … and Marta was playing pretty well at four. They were really pumped up and excited about the rest of the season … so they were bummed out when we had to stop playing."
Two incoming freshmen from Germany will join the roster this fall, and Bailey-Duvall hopes they'll help the team build on the momentum gained at the end of the shortened season.
Burrows will take advantage of the NCAA's additional year of eligibility granted to seniors and return for another season. She and rising senior sisters Zani and Lee Barnard lead an exciting bunch that otherwise is quite young, with the remaining three girls rising sophomores.
With a mixture of older, experienced girls and some young, budding talent, Bailey-Duvall is excited to get back on the court and keep the program moving in the right direction.
"You have to recruit really good players to put pressure on upperclassmen to try and fight for their spot, and I think our two girls coming in will be hard workers and will play at a high level and compete with our older girls," she said. "We're really excited about getting back at it."
Though her second season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all signs are pointing to the program being on an upwards trajectory.
Bailey-Duvall was hired as the 11th coach in program history in August of 2018. She had spent the previous six years as the head coach at her alma mater, Butler, where the Bulldogs won a Big East Tournament match in four of her last five seasons. Additionally, her program earned NCAA Public Recognition Awards every year for ranking in the top 10% of their sport based on multi-year Academic Progress Rates.
Indianapolis and the Butler campus grew to be a second home for Bailey-Duvall, a Chicago native. As a player there, she was a three-time first team all-conference nominee. She finished her career with a 74-46 all-time singles record and helped the team to three appearances in the conference tournament final. She graduated in 2006 with a degree in biology.
After graduation, Bailey-Duvall was an assistant coach for two seasons at Butler before playing professionally for four years at the Goldfine-Smatt International Tennis Academy in Hallandale Beach, Florida. She returned as the head coach at Butler in 2012.
It understandably would've taken a special opportunity for Bailey-Duvall to leave her alma mater, where she'd already had success as a young coach. But, that chance came in the form of the Blue Raiders in 2018.
"Butler really is a second home to me … but the thing that really encouraged me to move to MT were the resources are different here," she said. "Speaking to Chris Massaro, I felt like he cared about every team, and that goes a long way. Having a good AD who is supportive was really key to me making the move."
Bailey-Duvall's first year at MT didn't have as many victories as she'd hoped for, at least to begin with.
The Blue Raiders started 1-6 before turning things around and winning five of their final eight matches to finish the season 11-13. They advanced to the second round of the Conference USA Tournament before falling to No. 2 seed Rice.
It was a year full of learning experiences for Bailey-Duvall both on the court and off it. Little did she know how much more learning she'd have left to do.
"It was my first spring season with a new team, and some of the girls were still trying to decide if they could trust me or if they could buy into my coaching philosophy," she said. "It was a bit of a mental tug of war."
With her second year in Murfreesboro starting, Bailey-Duvall and her husband, Brett Duvall, announced she would coach this spring with a partner. The couple is pregnant with their first baby, due in the first week of May.
As if coaching and being pregnant weren't tough enough, the couple also tried their hand at opening a business in August, the Morning Brew coffeehouse, in downtown Murfreesboro. They've since had to close the doors because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bailey-Duvall expected to coach this season right up until it was time for her little one to be born. However, just like with the Morning Brew, circumstances changed.
Middle Tennessee again got off to a slow start before turning things around quickly, rattling off a six-match winning streak before the NCAA was forced to cancel the rest of the spring sports season because of COVID-19. The team held a 9-5 record.
The abrupt end to the season was painful for Bailey-Duvall and the Blue Raiders, especially the young team's two seniors. Lidia Burrows was creeping up the program's career singles wins list with 74, putting her fourth and two behind third, and fellow senior Marta Peris Herrero had just reached 111 combined singles and doubles victories in her career.
The team had also reached an ITA ranking of 83 nationally, just eight places off their goal to start the season.
"We were playing really well and things were clicking," Bailey-Duvall said. "Lidia went on a good streak there … and Marta was playing pretty well at four. They were really pumped up and excited about the rest of the season … so they were bummed out when we had to stop playing."
Two incoming freshmen from Germany will join the roster this fall, and Bailey-Duvall hopes they'll help the team build on the momentum gained at the end of the shortened season.
Burrows will take advantage of the NCAA's additional year of eligibility granted to seniors and return for another season. She and rising senior sisters Zani and Lee Barnard lead an exciting bunch that otherwise is quite young, with the remaining three girls rising sophomores.
With a mixture of older, experienced girls and some young, budding talent, Bailey-Duvall is excited to get back on the court and keep the program moving in the right direction.
"You have to recruit really good players to put pressure on upperclassmen to try and fight for their spot, and I think our two girls coming in will be hard workers and will play at a high level and compete with our older girls," she said. "We're really excited about getting back at it."
Players Mentioned
MTSU Tennis Pro-Am 9/6/25
Tuesday, September 09
Facility tour – Stephen and Denise Smith Student-Athlete Performance Center
Wednesday, July 30
Spring Sports Show hosted by The Boulevard – April 14, 2025: Women’s Tennis and Men’s Tennis
Monday, April 14
MTSU Women's Tennis vs WKU Recap on 04/08/25
Thursday, April 10
