Before Alan Hogan arrived at Lumpkin County three years ago, the tennis program hadn’t had much success in its history, which dates back to the 70s.

However, this season might have triggered the beginning of different things to come.

Hogan led the boys to its first playoff appearance ever, and guided the girls to only their third appearance and first since 2002.

For his efforts, Hogan is the Times’ 2011 All-Area Tennis Coach of the Year.

“It was thrilling to have both the boys and girls win the subregion,” said Hogan, referring to Lumpkin County’s 8A-AAA titles. “That was so wonderful to have both teams accomplish that feat.”

The Indians were led their three singles players, No. 1 Will Jarrard, No. 2 Ethan Horton and No. 2 Jared Copeland.

Jarrard, a senior, was 10-2 in region play and 13-6 overall. Horton, a junior, was 11-2 and 13-5. Copeland, also a junior, was 11-3 and 13-7.

“The three singles players really took their game to a higher level, and that was a key component to our success,” Hogan said of the boys team. “They carried the load.”

Under Hogan’s guidance, the Indians finished 12-7 and 9-1 in region play before losing to No. 1 seed Carrollton in the opening round of the Class AAA playoffs as a No. 4 seed.

Hogan attributes the Indians’ success to a winning mind set heading into the season.

“They developed more of a commitment to tennis,” Hogan said. “They decided they wanted to go to another level. We talked about it and had a great summer.”

Like the boys team, the Lady Indians were also led by their top three singles players. No. 1 Shannon Nothdorft, No. 2 Jessi Barrett and No. 2 Jennifer Vincent were the team’s key contributors.

Nothdorft, a senior, was 9-3 in region play and 11-4 overall. Barrett, also a senior, was 9-4 and 10-8. Vincent, a junior, was 11-2 and 14-6.

Also contributing were the No. 2 doubles team of Lauren Wimpy and Haleigh Brown, who went 11-3 and 12-7.

“We had some great athletes,” Hogan said. “The seniors really led the team in spirit and performance. The girls had great work ethic and responded to everything I asked them to do and had a great year.

“I’m going to miss those seniors.”

The Lady Indians finished 12-9 overall and 9-1 in region play before being eliminated by No. 1 seed LaGrange as a No. 4 seed.

Though Hogan admits he doesn’t know the complete history of Lumpkin County tennis, he can definitely make a case this was one of the most successful seasons in program history, for both the boys and girls.

“To have both the boys and girls win subregion and qualify for the state playoffs is a wonderful accomplishment,” Hogan said. “They put in a lot of hard work and improved every day. And when they started winning, they became more and more confident.”