Cleland's coaching record continues to grow

With 1,003 career victories, Hope native Tim Cleland is the state of Indiana’s fourth winningest high school coach of all-time.

That does not just include the tennis he coaches at Delta High School. It includes all coaches across all sports. That is one truly remarkable feat.

However, don’t try to tell the veteran coach/teacher that. The humble Cleland was quick to downplay the victories and turn the attention to how passionate he is regarding his role as teacher/coach at the school near Muncie.

Cleland was also quick to turn the credit for his accolades over to the athletes he coaches every fall and spring.

"I’m certainly proud of where we’re at,” stated Cleland - with a particular emphasis on the ‘we’re’ part of his comment. “It did take us some time to get there.”

It didn’t take long in the conversation with the enthusiastic tennis coach to see why he has been so successful. His coaching career has spanned 53 seasons (29 years as the boys’ coach and 24 years as the girls’ coach).

“It doesn’t feel like work,” Cleland said.

“Having the chance to be a positive influence and teach life lessons through the classroom and tennis court is very rewarding,” commented Cleland. “I love the age group I teach and coach. They are at a point in life where you can really make a difference.”

How It All Began

While still a student at Ball State University, Cleland began writing for the Muncie Evening Press in 1983. By the late 1980s, Cleland became the newspaper's sports editor. During that time, Cleland was also teaching tennis at the Muncie YMCA Tennis Center – a role he has had for over 30 years.

Just how Cleland became the boys’ tennis coach at Delta might be described as “fate” by some.

“It is a little bit of a fluke how I got involved,” a grateful Cleland said. 

In 1988, Cleland got the assignment to cover the Muncie tennis sectional at Ball State. At that point, he had no connections to Delta High School. That year, Delta had a freshman at #1 singles – Kaus Christopher – who just happened to be looking for a hitting partner over the winter months.

“I introduced myself to his parents and offered to hit with him,” recollected Cleland. “It turned out that I gave him tips and he kept me in shape.”

"Looking back, a situation like that would never happen today because a good player like him would have already had someone to play with,” said. Cleland

Christopher went on to finish third at the State Finals his junior and senior year before playing four years at Butler University. 

After a short time with Christopher, the young player told Cleland the Delta coach was pregnant and wondered if he would be interested in becoming their coach the next season.

“It threw me off guard because it was supposed to be a 12-week gig,” said Cleland.

After one season at the helm, Cleland returned as a volunteer assistant in 1990. Then the coach asked him to take over permanently in 1991. Cleland gladly did just that. The rest – they say – is history. 

That year marked the beginning of a 26-year consecutive streak of sectional championships. In another twist of fate, the coach (Pat Ervin) that asked Cleland to take over for her had a son, Zach, who that went on to become a four-time All-State player and Delta’s all-time winningest player under the tutelage of Cleland. Like Christopher, Ervin also went on to play four years at Butler. 

Life as a Teacher

When Cleland started coaching, he was still employed as a journalist.

“I fell in love with coaching and had been thinking of getting a teaching degree for some time,” explained Cleland. “My work hours provided the impetus to go ahead and do it.” 

Cleland began teaching at Delta in 1997. The yearbook/newspaper/television news teacher admitted is wasn’t easy juggling his many roles.

“Those were busy times for sure,” Cleland said. “I am still able to get my fix through what I teach – so it’s the best of both worlds. There is no better job than teaching and coaching.”

Coaching Accomplishments

Out of the 53 squads Cleland has coached, 44 have been ranked in the state’s Top 20 (approximately 310 high schools play tennis in Indiana). His squads have earned 50 sectional titles, 36 regional titles and 8 semi-state titles.

Having served as president of the Indiana High School Tennis Coaches’ Association since 1999, Cleland was inducted into the Indiana High School Tennis Hall of Fame in 2008.

Cleland needs only 22 more victories to surpass Floyd Central’s Rick Miller (now retired) as the all-time winningest high school tennis coach in Indiana history. Cleland needs 181 more “W’s” to pass Muncie Burris’ Steve Shondell (Volleyball) as Indiana’s all-time winningest high school coach.

Cleland’s father, Dave, admitted his son’s accomplishments can sometimes seem a bit surreal.

“Tim has created a huge family at Delta,” said the proud father. “He has had a lot of help from a lot of people.”

Father – like son – admits that it’s about a lot more than the victories.

“Parents just rave about him,” Dave Cleland said. “They aren’t just talking about the wins, they are talking about him as a role model – and that’s what we’re the most proud of as parents.”

Cleland’s teams have done a lot of charity over the years. Just a couple of charities to benefit from Delta tennis teams are Smash Cancer and Brianna’s Hope -- an East Central Indiana organization dedicated to addiction recovery).

The Future

“I’m now coaching kids of players I’ve coached,” reflected Cleland. “It’s interesting and fun to see old players and what they’re doing now.”

Cleland is quick to say he seldom thinks too far ahead.

“I have not even begun to think about retirement,” Cleland said. “I spend my time thinking about tomorrow. I still love practice and taking a team from the beginning and seeing where we can go.”

“It’s always been a labor of love for me,” said the veteran educator. “I don’t know where the time goes. Sometimes when I look back…”

The coach’s dad agrees that his son has quite a few years left in him. “He’s only 55 – he is going to win a lot more.”

Just how many more is anybody’s guess.

Cleland thought out loud, “As long as my health remains good and my energy remains good…”

Here’s betting there’s no question the 1981 Hauser grad – an All-State player at Hauser his senior year – will become Indiana’s all-time winningest high school coach. The only question that remains is when.