University of Tennessee Athletics
Diana Cantu Meets with Media for First Time
August 26, 2021 | Women's Golf
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – First-year Tennessee women's golf head coach and former Lady Vol golfer Diana Cantu spoke with the Knoxville media Thursday for the first time since reuniting with her alma mater.
The start of the Cantu era on Rocky Top during the 2021-22 campaign coincides with the 30th anniversary of the program. Cantu was named the program's fourth all-time head coach on June 8, 2021.
"There are a lot of things I learned here," Cantu said. "I definitely have the Tennessee stamp on my development as a player. I took a lot of that to my coaching in the last decade. Just coming here and seeing the continuous growth and evolvement of the athletic department and the resources that are being provided to our student-athletes has been great. We're trying to give them the best experience. This is why I got into coaching. Tennessee gave me the best collegiate experience I could ask for. I just want to give that back to our kids now."
Cantu, the 2021 Big Ten Coach of the Year, was a student-athlete at Tennessee from 2006-10. Her 130 career rounds played stand as the fifth-most in Lady Vol program history.
"I would like to say I'm a transformational leader. I've really spent time getting connected with the girls and learning about them, not just as players but as human beings. I think letting them know that we care more about them as people than the score that they post, really having a team environment with everybody having each other's backs is going to help them be comfortable with each other and know that even when we have a bad day, we're here for each other. What we're going to do is learn from that day and work to get better. I think that's going to let them play freely and play better golf."
The Lady Vols begin the 2021 fall season with a trip to Charleston, South Carolina, for the Cougar Classic from Sept. 13-14 at Yeamans Hall Club.
Tennessee will then play host to the 24th annual Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship at Cherokee Country Club in Knoxville from Sept. 20-21.
The start of the Cantu era on Rocky Top during the 2021-22 campaign coincides with the 30th anniversary of the program. Cantu was named the program's fourth all-time head coach on June 8, 2021.
"There are a lot of things I learned here," Cantu said. "I definitely have the Tennessee stamp on my development as a player. I took a lot of that to my coaching in the last decade. Just coming here and seeing the continuous growth and evolvement of the athletic department and the resources that are being provided to our student-athletes has been great. We're trying to give them the best experience. This is why I got into coaching. Tennessee gave me the best collegiate experience I could ask for. I just want to give that back to our kids now."
Cantu, the 2021 Big Ten Coach of the Year, was a student-athlete at Tennessee from 2006-10. Her 130 career rounds played stand as the fifth-most in Lady Vol program history.
"I would like to say I'm a transformational leader. I've really spent time getting connected with the girls and learning about them, not just as players but as human beings. I think letting them know that we care more about them as people than the score that they post, really having a team environment with everybody having each other's backs is going to help them be comfortable with each other and know that even when we have a bad day, we're here for each other. What we're going to do is learn from that day and work to get better. I think that's going to let them play freely and play better golf."
The Lady Vols begin the 2021 fall season with a trip to Charleston, South Carolina, for the Cougar Classic from Sept. 13-14 at Yeamans Hall Club.
Tennessee will then play host to the 24th annual Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship at Cherokee Country Club in Knoxville from Sept. 20-21.
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