After six months without a permanent leader, Lafayette College has filled its head men’s and women’s tennis coaching vacancy.
Robert LeBuhn ’88, who played two and a half seasons for the men’s tennis team, will return to Lafayette to take over as the program’s new head coach following the November departure of Ralph Van Ormer. Van Ormer left after nearly a decade to take a head coaching job at Muhlenberg College.
“It’s quite an honor,” LeBuhn said. “I’ve been away from Lafayette for 40 years almost, so when this opportunity arose, I thought nothing would be more of a feather in my cap than to come back to the school I graduated from and played tennis for.”
LeBuhn competed for the Leopards in his first three years before studying abroad during his junior spring and senior year. In both his freshman and sophomore seasons, the Maroon and White finished runner-up at the East Coast Athletic Conference championships behind Towson University.
Following his time as a student at Lafayette, LeBuhn coached across multiple levels, serving as interim women’s head coach for one season at Division III University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh and leading high school programs in both Wisconsin and California.
He currently serves as the men’s varsity tennis coach and women’s assistant coach at Laguna Beach High School in California, where he has spent the past year. LeBuhn will remain with the program through the end of the season before returning to Easton.
“I just actually moved out here, kind of as my last move, I thought,” said LeBuhn, who lived in 10 different states before California.
LeBuhn said his long-term vision is “to no longer be at the bottom of the Patriot League,” and to turn the program “into a winner again.”
Student‑athletes on both the men’s and women’s teams had the chance to interview LeBuhn before his hire and offer their own feedback, according to junior men’s tennis player Derrin Lerner.
“I think he’ll be great,” Lerner said. “It’s like an open window, this coach can really get us moving. I think it’s a great opportunity to have a stronger season than the last.”
Freshman men’s tennis player Ricky Espaillat said LeBuhn struck him as a “super organized guy who has a lot to give to the program.”
Junior women’s tennis player Hanna Ganchi said LeBuhn asked her how he could better support the team and advocate for its needs. She said he plans to introduce more strength and conditioning training, as well as individualized practices rather than full-team sessions, something she said she had not experienced while in college.
“He seems super optimistic, and I’m really excited,” Ganchi said. “I’m honestly upset that he’s coming in my senior year, but I know that he’ll do great things for this program.”
Benjamin White ‘27 contributed reporting.
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Tennis finds full-time head coach after 6-month opening – The Lafayette – The Oldest College Newspaper in Pennsylvania
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