Bio

Ignacio Poncio enters his seventh season as head coach of the Huntington University men’s tennis program, where he has guided the Foresters through one of the most successful eras in program history.

Under Poncio’s leadership, Huntington has emerged as a national contender, earning back-to-back NAIA National Championship appearances and advancing past Oakland City in the opening round this past spring. The Foresters reached as high as No. 4 in the ITA National Rankings and 10th in the NAIA Polls, reflecting their rise among the NAIA’s elite programs.

The 2026 season marked another milestone year as HU posted a 21-5 record, just the seventh 20-win season in program history, while continuing its dominance in Crossroads League play. After finishing fourth in his first two seasons, Poncio led the Foresters to three consecutive runner-up finishes before breaking through with an undefeated conference season to capture the 2026 Crossroads League regular-season title, the program’s first since 2014.

His athletes have accumulated 19 All-Conference honors, five NAIA All-America selections, and the 2026 Crossroads League Player of the Year in Julian Tantera. For his efforts, Poncio was named both the Crossroads League Coach of the Year and the 2026 NAIA East Region Coach of the Year.

A former standout for the Foresters, Poncio is no stranger to Huntington’s winning tradition. He graduated magna cum laude in 2019 with a double major in Business Management and Marketing and was a four-time All-Conference performer, one of only a select group in program history to achieve the feat.

As a student-athlete, Poncio anchored the top of the lineup for much of his career, helping lead HU to multiple top conference finishes. He also previously served as a Forester assistant coach and brings more than five years of private instruction experience along with coaching stops at Tenis Par Ciegos and Cordoba Golf Club.

Poncio combines elite playing pedigree, proven recruiting success, and a clear developmental vision as he continues to lead Huntington men’s tennis on the national stage.