Sheryl Yeary — coach, educator, and administrator

Sheryl Yeary

For three decades, Sheryl Yeary was a cornerstone of the Connecticut College Department of Physical Education and Athletics. A pioneer in her field, she taught and coached several sports and fitness activities, while holding administrative and leadership positions within the department.

Yeary came to the college in 1970 as a department instructor and later became a tenured associate professor of physical education. Over the years, she taught several racquet sports classes as well as a four-credit fitness/wellness course. She also coordinated the P.E. program administratively for many years.

Although her coaching philosophy focused more on team and individual growth than win-loss records, Yeary's teams were successful defeating opponents. She stands out for having not only coached three intercollegiate sports (tennis, squash, and volleyball), but also posting overall winning percentages in all three. Her combined career coaching record at the College was 329-281.

Yeary led the women's tennis program from infancy, posting a 178-153 mark in 28 seasons. Her squads ranked among the top 10 in New England for seven consecutive years (1982-88). In 1988, her final season of coaching, the Camels were ranked #10 in New England Women's Intercollegiate Tennis Association poll.

Among her tennis standouts were Josie Curran '75, a three-time Connecticut state singles champion, and the two-time state champion doubles pair of Curran and Bambi Flickinger '75, who is an Athletic Hall of Fame member. Another Hall of Famer, Sarah Hurst '91, was undefeated at number one singles and doubles in her rookie season, earned rankings as high as 23rd nationally, and was the 1988 New England runner-up at number two singles. Widely viewed as the most prolific player to take the courts in a Camel uniform, Hurst also won the Intercollegiate Tennis Coaches Association Regional Tournament, advancing to the ITCA National Championships.

In addition to overseeing the women's tennis squad, Yeary coached the men's tennis team in its early years of play. In 1987, she started the women's squash program and led the Camels to a 101-95 record in 11 seasons of competition. In only its second year of intercollegiate play, the squash team finished 9-4 and took second place at the prestigious Howe Cup tournament at Yale University. The team later won the Howe Cup in Division III competition. As the College's volleyball coach in the early years of that program, Yeary led the squad to a 50-33 mark in the 1970s.

As a player, Yeary had many achievements of her own. She learned to play tennis at the age of 12 in her hometown of Austin, Texas, and won the state singles championships as a high school senior. At the University of Texas at Austin, she earned a bachelor's degree in physical education in 1966. Interestingly, due to work commitments to finance her education, Yeary was unable to play in the tennis team's dual-match schedule; however, she was the three-time Texas state intercollegiate singles champion. While living in southeastern Connecticut, Yeary played tennis locally in the Thames Valley League. She earned regional and national age-group rankings in both singles and doubles, including number one ratings at 35+ and 45+ singles.

A tireless ambassador of her sport, Yeary was the tennis pro for a junior program at Old Black Point for two summers. She also conducted two summer-long clinics for employees at nearby Pfizer Inc. and taught private lessons to juniors and adults for many years. Interested in the mind-body connection, Yeary completed a 25-hour course with renowned sports psychologist James Loehr, and she spent a sabbatical working with Adam Goldberg, another noted sports psychologist. She also spent one summer working for the National Youth Sports Foundation.

After earning her master's degree in physical education from the University of Massachusetts in 1971, Yeary continued as a lifelong learner. Throughout her career, she took more than 20 courses in addictive studies, sponsored by the Connecticut Addictive Services. She also took part in Professionals in Residence, a five-day NCAA program at the Betty Ford Center, where coaches and administrators learned first-hand of the perils of addiction. Yeary became a Zone-certified teacher of nutrition at a nutrition testing site in San Diego, Calif., sponsored by Barry Sears, who has authored numerous books on Zone Nutrition.

After retiring from Connecticut College in 2001, Yeary coached the Waterford High School boys' tennis team. In 2003, she returned to her hometown of Austin, Texas, where she currently resides.