In just five seasons leading the Northern Illinois University women’s tennis program, Eric Burns ranks among the winningest women’s tennis coaches ever at NIU while leading the Huskies to double-digit wins in five consecutive seasons, the longest streak in school history.
His .550 winning percentage at NIU entering the 2025 dual match season is the best of any women’s tennis coach all-time. He already ranks third on the Huskie women’s tennis all-time wins list with 71, behind only Patty Groth (128) and Laura Scott (86), each of whom spent 10 seasons at NIU.
In 22 seasons leading women’s tennis programs at NIU, Wright State and Purdue Fort Wayne, Burns ranks among the Top 20 active coaches in Division I in victories. Entering the 2024-25 season, his 375 career wins are tied for 18th among active Division I women’s tennis head coaches, while his .598 career winning percentage puts him in the Top 50.
Burns’ “wins” at NIU have not been limited to on the court victories as he continues to push NIU tennis forward. He played a role in bringing the new Nelson Tennis Center at Chick Evans Field House to fruition, providing the first true on-campus home for the NIU men’s and women’s tennis teams in school history. He has overseen the addition of on-court cameras, allowing fans to follow live on-court action from every home match and ensured that live scores are available. He has served on the ITA Midwest Regional committee since 2022.
The Huskies have also excelled academically under Burns as they earned recognition as an ITA All-Academic Team in each of his five seasons. NIU had seven individuals earn ITA Scholar-Athlete recognition in 2023-24 after six earned the recognition in 2022-23. The Huskies’ six Academic All-MAC student-athletes led the league in 2023-24. In all, Huskies have earned 17 Academic All-MAC recognitions in Burns’ five seasons.
The Huskies’ 2022 signing class, which included current Huskies Jenna Horne, Isabella Righi and Nataly Ninova, ranked 36th nationally by Tennisrecruiting.net. All three players have been regulars in the NIU line-up over the last three seasons. In addition, three of Burns’ earlier signees now rank on NIU’s all-time singles wins chart, including 2023-24 senior Diana Lukyanova, whose 84 career singles wins and 143 combined victories are second in the record books.
Burns’ 2023-24 Huskies recorded 16 wins, the second-highest total of his NIU tenure; the Huskies’ 5-5 league record left them just one place out of playing in the MAC semifinals. The 2022-23 squad won 12 dual matches with a line-up that featured five freshmen and sophomores in the line-up, with Lukyanova leading the way in her junior season en route to second team All-MAC honors.
In 2021-22, his first season not affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, Burns led NIU to a 17-11 record, including a 4-6 mark versus teams from the Mid-American Conference. The Huskies’ 17 wins were the most by a NIU team in 32 seasons, since 1989-90.
The 17-11 campaign in 2021-22 built on the spring 2021 dual match season when NIU went 14-15 despite the elimination of the Fall 2021 tournament season due to COVID-19. NIU’s 14 wins were the most since 2012-13, while the Huskies’ six wins over MAC teams were the most for NIU in 18 seasons, since 2002-03. In addition, No. 1 singles player Maria Potsi was named second team All-MAC, the first Huskie to earn league accolades since 2017.
Burns led the Huskies to a 12-6 record in 2020, before the season was ended prematurely due to COVID-19 with 12 matches to play. NIU’s dual match wins were more than NIU had accumulated in the previous two seasons combined and were the most by a Huskie women’s tennis team since the 2015 squad won 11 matches. His 2020 signing class was ranked 23rd in Tennisrecruiting.net’s mid-major category.
The Hanover, Indiana native came to NIU after leading both the Wright State men’s and women’s tennis programs from 2015-19. Under his leadership, the Raiders women’s tennis team amassed a 72-50 record and qualified for the Horizon League Tournament each year. Wright State appeared in the championship match in 2016 and 2017 and the semifinals in 2018 and 2019. Burns led the Raiders to two 20-win seasons in three seasons and mentored six All-Horizon League selections during his tenure.
He served as the men’s and women’s tennis head coach at Purdue Fort Wayne for 13 seasons before the programs were discontinued in 2015. During his tenure, the women won 232 matches and posted a winning percentage of .617 with 10 consecutive winning seasons and five 20-win campaigns. The Mastodons won four Summit League titles (2009-10-11-13) and played in three NCAA Tournaments (2010-11-13). The 2010 NCAA appearance was the first in program history. The Mastodons never finished lower than third in the regular season standings and advanced to the Summit League Championship finals six times.
In addition to being successful on the court, Burns-led teams at both Wright State and Purdue Fort Wayne excelled in the classroom. The Wright State women’s tennis team was selected as an ITA All-Academic Team all four years of his tenure, and the PFW women’s tennis squads earned the same honor in 12 of his 13 seasons. He also coached four CoSIDA All-Academic District selections at PFW, including the first CoSIDA Academic All-American, Ingrid Ballus, in school history in 2011.
Burns got his coaching start as an assistant at Franklin in 2000 and was a volunteer at Anderson University in 2001. He then worked as an assistant at Purdue Fort Wayne for one season under Roxann Krahn before taking over as head coach in 2002. Burns also served as an assistant boys coach at Shelbyville High School in 2000, helping them to their first ever semi-state appearance.
A 1999 graduate of Franklin College, Burns was a four-year letterwinner for the Grizzlies and helped lead them to the only Heartland Athletic Conference title in school history in 1999, while capturing two individual conference titles. He graduated from Franklin with a bachelor’s in physical education and earned his master’s degree in sports administration from Ball State in 2003.
BURNS' CAREER WOMEN'S DUAL MATCH RECORD
| School (Years) |
Seasons |
W-L |
Pct. |
| NIU (2019-present) |
5 |
71-58 |
.550 |
| Wright State (2015-19) |
4 |
72-50 |
.590 |
| Purdue Fort Wayne (2002-15) |
13 |
232-144 |
.617 |
| Career (2002-present) |
22 |
375-252 |
.598 |
BURNS YEAR-BY-YEAR COACHING RECORD AT NIU
| Season |
Overall |
MAC |
| 2019-20* |
12-6 |
0-0 |
| 2020-21^ |
14-15 |
6-8 |
| 2021-22 |
17-11 |
4-6 |
| 2022-23 |
12-16 |
2-8 |
| 2023-24 |
16-10 |
5-5 |
| Total (5 Seasons) |
71-58 |
17-27 |
*Season cut short due to COVID-19; ^No fall schedule due to COVID-19.
