Sean McInerney (Mac-in-er-nee) is in his 10th year as Utah State’s head women’s tennis coach after being hired on May 2, 2013.
For the 2021-22 campaign, McInerny guided USU to a 6-14 record which included a 1-9 mark in Mountain West action. Under McInerney's tutelage, junior Carolina Millan was named to the All-MW Singles team and received her third MW Player of the Week honor of her career. The Aggies also excelled in the classroom, as six players received Academic All-MW honors and three players were named MW Scholar-Athletes.
In the 2020-21 season, McInerney led the Aggies to a 7-13 record, including a 2-8 mark in MW play. With McInerney at the helm, Millan and Zara Ryan each earned recognition on the MW All-Conference Singles team, the second consecutive year a pair of Aggies received the honor. Millan also won MW Player of the Week honors twice during the year.
During the 2019-20 season, McInerney led Utah State to a 4-3 overall record, including three straight victories to open dual match play. However, the remainder of the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Under McInerney, Lucy Octave earned the final Mountain West Player of the Week honors after she posted wins in the No. 1 positions in both doubles and singles in a 4-1 team victory against UC Riverside.
McInerney guided three Aggies to all-Mountain West honors in 2020 as Octave and Hannah Jones were named to the all-singles team, while Jones and Sidnee Lavatai earned all-MW honors in doubles. Seven Aggies earned academic all-MW honors, four were named MW Scholar-Athletes and five were named ITA Scholar-Athletes.
During the 2018-19 season, McInerney led Utah State to a fifth-consecutive postseason win, which is a program record, with a 4-3 victory against Boise State in the first round of the Mountain West Tournament. USU finished with a 12-11 overall record, going 2-3 in conference play. This marked Utah State’s 10th season with double-digit wins, six of which have come under McInerney. He also led the Aggies to five-straight wins during the dual match season, which was the first time since 2013-14 that USU won five-straight matches. At the conclusion of the season, three Utah State players earned all-Mountain West recognitions, as Alexandra Pisareva was named to the all-singles team and Jones and Alexandra Taylor were recognized as a doubles duo.
The Aggies were also successful in the classroom as five players earned academic all-MW honors, three were named MW Scholar-Athletes, three were named ITA Scholar-Athletes and six were named Joe E. and Elma Whitesides Scholar-Athletes.
In the 2017-18 season, McInerney led Utah State to a program record-tying 14 wins. The Aggies also won a postseason match for the fourth consecutive year with a 4-3 victory over Air Force in the first round of the Mountain West Tournament. USU finished with a 14-12 overall record, including a 3-2 ledger in conference play.
Individually, McInerney guided freshman Sasha Pisareva to earn all-MW honors in singles play. The Aggies were also successful in the classroom as six Aggies earned academic all-MW honors, three were named MW Scholar-Athletes and six were named ITA Scholar-Athletes.
During the 2016-17 season, the Aggies finished with a 13-11 overall record, going 2-3 in Mountain West action. McInerney guided Nini Guensler and Sabrina Demerath to all-MW doubles honors. Guensler also earned all-MW honors in singles. Nine student-athletes earned academic all-MW honors, while five were named MW Scholar-Athletes during the season.
During the 2015-16 season, USU posted an overall record of 11-13, going 2-3 in conference play. The Aggies continued to see success in the postseason, defeating Air Force in the first round of the Mountain West Tournament. Under McInerney’s guidance, Guensler earned all-MW singles honors. Every athlete on the USU roster earned academic all-MW honors, while four were named MW Scholar-Athletes.
In the 2014-15 season, McInerney led the team to a school record dual-match wins total for the second consecutive season, as the Aggies went 14-11 on the year, posting a 2-3 conference record. The Aggies earned their first Intercollegiate Tennis Association national ranking, as USU was ranked as high as No. 62 during the season. Utah State also earned its first postseason victory since 2005, when it defeated UNLV, 4-3, in the first round of the Mountain West Tournament.
McInerney guided McKenzie Davis to all-MW honors in both singles and doubles, while Maggie O’Meara earned all-MW honors for her doubles play. Davis also participated in the ITA Mountain Region Tournament, earning the first victory in school history. Davis was named the ITA Mountain Region Senior of the Year for her efforts, as she set a school record in dual match singles wins (19). Davis ended her career as USU’s all-time leader in total wins (168), singles wins (91) and doubles wins (77). That season, eight student-athletes earned academic all-MW honors in 2015, while four were recognized as MW Scholar-Athletes.
In his first season at Utah State, McInerney coached the program to a then-school-record 13 wins, while also posting USU’s first Mountain West victory in its first year in the league with a 5-2 win against Colorado State. He also coached Davis to a then-school-record 17 dual-match wins and all-MW honors. Davis ended the season ranked No. 12 in the final ITA Mountain Region singles rankings, while the duo of Davis and Kallie Sperry were ranked eighth in the Mountain Region doubles rankings. Davis received all-MW accolades, her second such honor after being named to the all-Western Athletic Conference team as a freshman in 2012.
Utah State had five players honored for academic excellence in 2014, as five student-athletes earned academic all-MW honors and four were named MW Scholar-Athletes.
McInerney came to Utah State after spending the previous four years as the head women’s tennis coach at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, earning Horizon League Coach of the Year honors in 2012 and 2013 as he led the Panthers to back-to-back third-place conference finishes and their best two-year league win total in school history.
During the 2013 season at UW-Milwaukee, McInerney led the Panthers to a 12-10 record and tied the school record for most Division I wins in a single season with 11. Milwaukee also finished third in the Horizon League for the second time in as many years with a 4-3 mark.
In 2012, the Panthers finished in third place in the Horizon League and set the single-season school record with six league wins, as McInerney became the first tennis coach in school history to be named conference coach of the year. In 2012, Milwaukee had individuals set school records for both singles and doubles wins, and finished one win shy of the school record for overall team wins.
During his time in Milwaukee, McInerney served in a wide variety of tennis-related capacities as he spent the 2008-09 school year as head coach of the men’s team at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, and was the head coach of the girl’s team at Divine Savior Holy Angels High School from 2004-13. He was also a tennis professional in the state for 13 years. At Divine Savior Holy Angels HS, McInerney helped his team finish in the top four of the final state Division I rankings in each of his final four seasons, while also working to coach and develop three Wisconsin doubles champions. During the 2008-09 season at Milwaukee School of Engineering, McInerney led the program to its most wins in school history, boosting the team total from four before he arrived in 2008 to 15 in 2009.
McInerney has three children: Brayden, Adley and Gabriel.