Bio

In the Spring of 2014, Coach Jackie Ponciano-Babb had her most successful season yet.  After completing her fourth year as head coach for Diablo Valley, Coach Ponciano-Babb was able to share on-court success with both the women’s and men’s teams.  For the second year in a row, her women’s team qualified for the CCCAA NorCal playoffs.  Finishing in a tie for second place in the Big 8 Conference, the Lady Vikings qualified as the 6^th seed in the north region.  They played the 3-seed Fresno City College and lost 7-2 in the first round of playoffs.  For the first time, her men’s team qualified as the 8^th seed in the north region.  They were matched up to play the #1 seed and defending State Champions, Fresno City College.  Both teams represented the Big 8 Conference with respect and played their hearts out under the hot central valley sun.

During the 2013 campaign, Coach Ponciano-Babb took her women’s team to the second round of the CCCAA Norcal playoffs.  After finishing second in the conference, the Lady Vikings experienced their most successful season with Darya Ashim (FR, Westmoor) leading the way.  Under head coach Ponciano-Babb and assistant coach Ruthie Ignacio, Ashim became the most celebrated student-athlete that has ever competed for DVC women's tennis program. Ashim earned Big 8 Conference MVP honors, going undefeated with a singles record of 8-0 and an overall record of 13-0.  She was the #1 seed for the NorCal Singles Draw for the CCCAA State Championships.  Ashim was named as the ITA National Women's Rookie of the Year.  She is the first student-athlete in DVC’s history to win the award, a truly remarkable accomplishment.  Coach Ponciano-Babb stated, “She definitely has made her case for becoming the first female tennis player to eventually be inducted into the Diablo Valley College Athletic Hall of Fame.”  She completed her season at DVC with an overall singles record of 16-1.

In her first three seasons, Coach Ponciano-Babb has always stressed the importance of being competitive, striving to do more, playing with self-control and having fun as a student-athlete in our tennis program here at DVC.  Since the beginning of her tenure, she has increased the amount of student-athletes that participate in the CCCAA NorCal Playoffs and the State Championships every year.

“Having the right people to work with, as assistant coaches, makes all the long hours of practices, matches, driving and coaching these young people worth it”, says Coach Ponciano-Babb.  Many thanks go out to Ruthie Ignacio and Jeff Jaymot, the world’s best assistant coaches, for all their hard work.

If you are interested in joining the program, please contact Coach Ponciano-Babb at jponciano-babb@dvc.edu