DHS boys and girls tennis coach Tim Cleland received the highest award available in Indiana high school tennis with his induction into the Indiana HS Tennis Hall of Fame on Feb. 8, 2008.
The 17th annual induction ceremony was at the Barbara S. Wynne Tennis Center in Indianapolis. A reception was planned for 6:30 p.m., and the induction dinner and ceremony followed at 7 p.m. There are now 95 members of the Indiana Tennis Hall of Fame. Those members include prominent players, past and current coaches, and others who have played major roles in the development of Indiana high school tennis.
At age 46, Coach Cleland is one of the youngest coaches ever to be inducted. With 640 career wins, he ranks #8 on the all-time victory list among Indiana high school tennis coaches. Thirteen of the top 14 coaches on that list are members of the Hall of Fame.
Coach Cleland is the second Delaware County resident to be inducted. Muncie YMCA tennis pro Steve Behrman, a two-time IHSAA state doubles champion and one of Indiana’s top teaching pros, was inducted in 2004.
Delta is one of only 20 schools statewide to participate in both the IHSAA Boys State Finals (2004) and the IHSAA Girls State Finals (2000). Fewer than 10 people have coached a team in both the boys and girls IHSAA state tennis finals.
The Eagles’ current streak of 15 straight Boys Tennis Regional titles is the second-longest streak in Indiana and is the longest streak in Delaware County history for any sport.
The Eagles have reached the Team or Individual Singles/Doubles State Finals in 17 of Coach Cleland’s 35 seasons. On five occasions, DHS players have finished as either State Singles or State Doubles Runners-Up, including the 2007 doubles runner-up team of Dan Klingenberg and Jeff Price and the 2006 singles runner-up Hayley Hall.
In addition to his success at Delta HS, Coach Cleland also has been an active leader in the Indiana HS Tennis Coaches Association. He has served as president of that organization for 10 years. In that role, he has helped organize the annual State Tennis Convention, has helped formulate new rules for high school tennis, has chaired numerous district and state coaches’ meetings, and has chaired Rules Interpretation Meetings for the IHSAA.
He also has organized more than 40 tennis tournaments in Muncie and Delaware County during the past two decades and has directed the Tim Cleland Tennis Camp for more than 1,000 youths over the past 14 summers.
