San Antonio - Recently appointed Trinity Tigers women's tennis Coach Gretchen Rush won the singles title on July 20 at the USTA Women's 50 Grass Court Championships at Forest Hills, New York.

Coach Rush, the tournament's No. 2 seed, defeated top-seeded Susan Wright 7-5, 6-2 in the final played at the venerable West Side Tennis Club. The club hosted the U.S. Open for many years, before the event moved to its current location at Flushing Meadows.

Coach Rush did not drop a set in her quest for the Grass Court championship.

A 1986 Trinity graduate, Coach Rush captured the 1983 NCAA Division I Women's Doubles Championship (with Louise Allen). She was runner-up in 1985 (with Lisa Sassano) and 1986 (with Ann Hulbert). Coach Rush also was the singles runner-up in 1985 and 1986. She was named the College Women's Player of the Year in 1984 and 1985, and the Intercollegiate Tennis Coaches Association Senior Women's Player of the Year in 1986.

After graduation, Coach Rush had a successful career as a tennis professional, attaining a top-20 world ranking in singles and doubles. She advanced to the singles quarterfinals of Wimbledon, the French Open, and the U.S. Open. Additionally, Coach Rush won four singles and four doubles titles on the pro tour.

For the past two years, Coach Rush has guided the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps College Athenas women's tennis team at Claremont, California. Last May, on their home courts, the Athenas were edged 5-4 by Johns Hopkins University in the NCAA Division III quarterfinals. A C-M-S doubles team advanced to the final for the second consecutive year. In 2013, the Athenas fought their way to the NCAA team semifinals, and had representatives in both the singles and doubles championship matches.

Coach Rush takes over a Tiger team which sported a 14-9 record in the 2014 campaign. Trinity advanced to its third consecutive NCAA Division III Tournament, beating Otterbein University in the opening round. The Tigers fell to the University of Mary Washington in the second round. Earlier, Trinity captured its third straight Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship, played in front of the Tiger faithful.