Dr. Rick Harley is in his sixth season as the head tennis coach at Nebraska Wesleyan University. In his five years at the helm, the men and women have finished no lower than second in the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) standings, won seven GPAC team titles, have a combined league mark of 65-7 and have been regulars at the NAIA Regional Tournament.
Last season, he helped the women’s team share the GPAC regular season title and advance to their second straight NAIA National Championship appearance. The men also lost just one conference match and finished as GPAC runner-up.
In 2007, Harley led the Prairie Wolves to GPAC Championships posting perfect undefeated records for both the men and the women. The NWU men earned the No. 1 seed at the NAIA Region III Tournament but lost in the championship to the University of Sioux Falls. Coach Harley was named the Hauff Mid-America Sports/GPAC Men’s Tennis Coach-of-the-Year. The NWU women won the NAIA Region III Tournament and qualified for the NAIA National Championships for the first time since 1996.
In 2006 Harley guided the Prairie Wolves to GPAC Tournament titles for both men and women, as well as a pair of regular season championships (the men were co-champions with the University of Sioux Falls). The NWU men advanced to the NAIA Championships after winning the NAIA Region III Tournament, while the women were Region III Runners-up. In addition, Harley was selected as the Hauff Mid-America Sports/GPAC Coach of the Year for men was named the Co-Coach of the Year for women.
Harley, who served as an assistant on the tennis staff in 1996 and 1997, took over the top job in 2003 after a successful run as head coach of the NWU women’s golf team. Under his direction, the Prairie Wolves won four conference titles (1996, 1998, 1999 and 2000) in seven seasons. Nebraska Wesleyan had won just one league crown (1982) in women’s golf prior to Harley’s arrival.
A three-year letter winner in tennis at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln from 1962-64, Harley attended medical school at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and served as a family practitioner in Lincoln for 21 years before retiring in 1992.
Harley has played in adult tennis tournaments since 1970 and has consistently appeared in state and regional rankings. He has also played in senior events in Palm Springs and Phoenix for several years. In 1992, Harley was a member of the 4.0 Senior USTA National Championship team.
Harley participated in the 2004 World International Tennis Federation (ITF) senior grass court championships in Philadelphia, and he currently plays on a variety of USTA tennis teams during the summer. Harley resides in Lincoln with his wife, Pat. Their daughter Stephanie is an assistant on the Nebraska Wesleyan tennis staff.
Harley’s Record
| Year |
Overall |
Conference |
| 2004 |
13-9 |
5-1 |
| 2005 |
14-15 |
6-1 |
| 2006 |
16-13 |
6-1 |
| 2007 |
17-6 |
7-0 |
| 2008 |
13-8 |
6-1 |
| Career |
73-51 |
30-4 |
 Stephanie
Harley
Assistant Coach
Stephanie Harley is also in her sixth season as an assistant with the NWU tennis teams, under the guidance of head coach and father, Dr. Rick Harley.
Harley participated in tennis for three seasons while a student at Nebraska Wesleyan. She was the conference champion in No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles during her senior season and also qualified for the NAIA Championships in 1996 and 1998. After finishing her playing career and graduating from NWU with a degree in political science in 1998, Harley went on to earn her master’s degree in health administration from The Ohio State University in 2001.
She continues to participate in local tournaments and USTA mixed doubles leagues. She also competed at the national 10.0 mixed doubles league tournament with fellow assistant coach Dr. David Treichel. In addition to her duties with the NWU tennis teams, Broady is Project Manager for the Community Health Endowment of Lincoln.
 Dr. David
Treichel
Assistant Coach
David Treichel enters his fourth season as an assistant coach with the Nebraska Wesleyan tennis teams after joining the Prairie Wolves as a new assistant coach in 2006.
He started his playing days at West High School in Madison, Wis., where he played on the varsity squad for four years. Treichel continued his career at Carleton College, located in Northfield, Minn. While at Carleton, Treichel was a three-time NCAA Division III All-American. He also taught at tennis camp for three summers while attending college.
In addition to tennis, Treichel is a chemistry professor at Nebraska Wesleyan. He received his Ph.D. in chemistry from Northwestern University in 1992. Treichel and his wife, Katherine, reside in Lincoln and have two children, Megan and Allen.
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