Head coach Lew Kosich is in his third year at the helm of the Montana State Billings men’s and women’s tennis programs. In his three years, he has taken the Yellowjackets from the bottom-ranked team in the RMAC to 4
th, 3
rd, and 2
nd place conference finishes, and to the NCAA post-season tournament.
Kosich graduated from Billings Senior High in 1964, and the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., in 1968. He served 11 years as a Navy fighter pilot, helped develop the Navy’s Laser Guided Bomb delivery tactics, and was a Top Gun fighter pilot. He flew 165 missions in Vietnam between April 1972 and January 1973, and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, 12 Air Medals with the Combat V, the Navy Commendation Metal with the Combat V, the Navy Achievement Medal, and numerous other citations for his combat service.
After the Navy, Kosich joined United Airlines, where he became the first Captain certified to fly the Boeing 777, and the first Chief Pilot of the 777 Fleet. As Director of Flight Operations Support, he was one of the Senior Flight Operations representatives in the Crisis Center on 9-11 and the weeks following. Kosich was placed in charge of Flight and Flight Crew Security during the post 9-11 period. He retired from that position in 2003, and returned to his tennis career full time.
Kosich is a member of the United States Professional Tennis Association, 2005-08 USPTA Colorado District, President; served as a member of the Colorado Tennis Association Board of Directors, and as Chairman of the Junior Competition Committee. He currently sits on the USTA Montana Board of Directors. Kosich played tennis at Annapolis, and in pro tournaments throughout Europe, Asia, and the United States. He spent two years prior to coming to MSUB in Fresno, Calif.. There he was the Director of Operations and a Peak Performance Coach at the Stine 360 Tennis Academy, which he co-founded with Brad Stine (former coach of tennis great, Jim Courier).
Kosich created the
P3E© Pathway to Competitive Excellence program
; is a certified NCAA head coach, and has been a Peak Performance Coach for Division I college teams and touring professionals. He has run clinics with noted pros such as Stine, Stan Smith, Tom Gullikson and Brent Hobden. Kosich has also worked as a tennis professional in Colorado, California and Virginia, and has been the Tournament Director at sectional and national tournaments. In addition, he trained for four years at the United States Olympic Training Center, and is co-holder of the Civilian Team National Record in International Rapid Fire Pistol.
