Tully, Curylo receive contract extensions through 2025

UIC Athletics has extended the contracts of head women’s tennis coach Shannon Tully and head softball coach Lynn Curylo through 2025. The new agreements were approved by Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois at its May meeting.

“Shannon and Lynn are outstanding coaches and leaders who have each built programs that set the standard for our league,” said director of athletics Michael Lipitz. “These new agreements reflect our continued commitment and best ensure their leadership of our programs for many years to come.”

Tully arrived at UIC in 2001 and has guided the program to unprecedented success ever since. The Flames have earned 14 Horizon League championships and competed at the NCAA Tournament 14 times during her tenure, most recently earlier this month in Columbus, Ohio. She has been voted by her peers as the conference’s Coach of the Year 12 times, including every year from 2005-11. She also earned the distinction every season since 2017.

The Ohio native won her 300th career match in UIC’s regular-season finale in April, a 7-0 shutout against Oakland. Tully entered the 2021 season ranked 50^th all-time in NCAA history in winning percentage, owning a 66.7 winning percentage heading into the recently completed campaign. Tully also ranked 30th in winning percentage amongst active Division-I head coaches and 40th in victories amongst active Division-I head coaches.

Tully’s teams are also outstanding in the classroom. Women’s tennis boasted the highest grade-point average among all UIC teams in the recently completed spring semester, a mark of 3.85. Six of the eight student-athletes on the roster had spotless marks of 4.0 during the spring season in which they also won a conference championship.

Curylo, a proud UIC alumna, aided the softball program in reaching the NCAA Tournament in 2021 for the third time in the four most recently completed seasons. The Flames were crowned Horizon League Regular Season Champions in each of her first three campaigns at her alma mater. The squad finished tied for second this spring but roared through the Horizon League Tournament with three consecutive wins as the No. 3 seed to raise the trophy once again. She was selected as the Horizon League Coach of the Year in 2017 and 2018.

The Chicago native owns 142 wins as UIC’s head coach, winning more than 59% of games played. Curylo’s teams have been downright dominant in Horizon League play with a record of 82-23 and a winning percentage of 78.1%.

The Flames have earned Horizon League Player of the Year accolades three times during Curylo’s tenure at UIC, and Horizon League Pitcher of the year once. The program has garnered eight National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-Region awards since 2017, and in 2019, Skylee James was named All-America.

The softball program is also one of UIC’s strongest academically. The Flames registered a 3.71 GPA during the spring, an overall increase from an equally impressive mark of 3.58 in fall 2020. Six softball student-athletes record perfect GPAs of 4.0 during the recent spring season in which they won the Horizon League Championship.

Curylo’s program also actively engages in a variety of mission-driven service opportunities. This spring the team raised more than $7,000 on behalf of Vs. Cancer and the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation.