Coaching Experience
• Head Coach, Flagler College (2017-present)
• Assistant Coach, Iowa State University (2011-13)
• Head Coach (women's), University of North Florida (2008-11)
• Assistant Coach, University of North Florida (2006-08)
• Assistant Coach, University of Texas-El Paso (2005-06)
• Graduate Assistant Coach, Columbus State University (2003-05)
• Head Coach (women's)/Assistant Coach (men's), Pikeville College (2001-03)
Education
• B.S., Business Management, Pikeville College, 2002
• M.S., Health Services Management, Columbus State University, 2005
Coaching at Flagler
After serving as the assistant men's and women's tennis coach since the summer of 2014, Puebla was named the seventh head women's tennis coach at Flagler in July of 2016. He begins his sixth season this fall.
Puebla led the Saints back to the NCAA D2 National Tournament semifinal round. Flagler finished with a 23-6 overall record and a 5-1 mark in the PBC. The Saints shared the conference regular season crown. Dana Heimen earned ITA All-America honors in singles and doubles while Anastasia Nikolova received All-America honors in doubles. Five Flagler players earned all-conference honors in singles and two doubles teams earned all-conference recognition. Adela Latalova was the PBC Freshman of the Year while Puebla was named coach of the year and the ITA Southeast Region Coach of the Year. Eryka Kruk was selected to the academic all-district team and she was joined on the academic all-conference team by Heimen. Four Saints earned ITA All-Academic honors. Heimen was ranked No. 5 in the final ITA national rankings while Nikolova was No. 37. Heimen and Nikolova finished No. 4 in the final doubles ranking.
The 2023-24 season saw Puebla lead the Saints to NCAA D2 regionals after finishing the regular season 15-6 overall, with a 5-1 conference record. The Saints defeated the No. three and No. five and No. six teams at the time of their meeting. In the final ITA rankings, Flagler finished No. 8 in D2. Nadja Maier finished the season as the No. four ranked singles player, awarding her All-American honors. Dana Heimen finished the season at the No. 54 spot. In doubles, the duo of Meier and Heimen were ranked seventh, awarding them All-American. Additionally Meier was named to the CSC Academic All-America team and was named the ITA Southeast Region Player of the Year. In the PBC, Puebla was selected as the Co-Coach of the Year while leading Meier to the PBC player of the year and Toni Pfeiffer to the PBC Freshman of the Year.
Puebla took the women's program to a place it hasn't been before since moving to NCAA Division II...the final four. The Saints won the Peach Belt Conference regular season and post-season titles. Flagler advanced out of the preliminary round to compete in the Round of 16 for the second consecutive season. The Saints finished with a 22-5 overall record and posted a perfect 7-0 mark in league play. Flagler was ranked a Division II era-best No. 4 in the final ITA poll. Puebla coached a pair of All-Americans in Luisa Hrda and Nadja Meier. Hrda was the PBC Player of the Year for the second year in a row and Dana Heimen took home PBC Freshman of the Year honors. Puebla was named PBC Coach of the Year for the second time in his career. Three singles players earned all-conference honors as well as all three doubles teams.
In 2021-22, Puebla coached the Saints to a share of the PBC regular season title and took the team to the NCAA Division II Round of 16 for the first time. The Saints advanced to the quarterfinal round. Luisa Hrda earned ITA All-America honors in singles and doubles (with Eden Schlagenhauf). Hrda was selected as the PBC's Player of the Year and she joined Anika Nissen on the all-conference first team singles. The doubles teams of Hrda/Schlagenhauf and Nissen and Alessandra Traub picked up first team all-conference honors. Flagler finished the year ranked No. 8 in the country. Hrda (No. 5) and Traub (No. 61) were nationally ranked singles players while Hrda and Schlagenhauf were ranked No. 4 in doubles by the ITA.
Puebla coached the Saints to their first Peach Belt Conference Tournament title in 2021 and a No. 9 final rankings from the ITA. Luisa Hrda received ITA All-America honors after finishing the season ranked No. 14 in singles. Hrda and Eden Schlagenhauf were ranked No. 19 in the final national doubles ranking. Schalegenhauf was ranked No. 26 in the last ITA singles ranking. Puebla also coached six players to all-conference honors and four more earned academic all-conference accolades.
The 2019-20 season saw the Saints go 8-4 before the remainder of the season was cancelled due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. Flagler was ranked No. 12 in the final Oracle/ITA Division II poll. Eden Schlagenhauf and Lixin Wang earned ITA All-America honors in singles. Schlagenhauf was ranked No. 28 in the nation while Wang was No. 36.
Flagler had one if its best seasons in 2018-19, despite only having six players. The Saints finished in second place in one of the most competitive leagues in the nation, the Peach Belt Conference. Flagler finished with a 17-7 overall record, went to the NCAA regional, and finished with a No. 16 national ranking. Lixin Wang and Anika Nissen were selected to the all-conference first-team in doubles. Nissen, Felicitas Runkel, and Eden Schlagenhauf earned second-team all-conference honors in singles. Schlagenahuaf was tabbed as the PBC Freshman of the Year and Puebla was the co-Coach of the Year.
In 2017-18, Flagler finished in fifth place in the Peach Belt Conference with a 5-3 record. The Saints finished with an overall mark of 10-11. Flagler finished the year ranked No. 36 in the country and Lizanne Jinkertz finished ranked 39th in singles. Jinkertz earned first-team all-conference honors in singles as well as second-team all-conference honors in doubles with teammate Camilla Ramazzini. Felicitas Runkel was selected to the All-PBC second-team in singles.
Puebla's first year as a head coach was an excellent one as he coached the Saints to a 20-5 overall record and the team was ranked as as high as No. 8, nationally. Lizanne Jinkertz earned all-conference honors.
In 2015-16, he helped coach Lizanne Jinkertz to a No. 28 final ranking in the ITA Division II national rankings.
Puebla Notables
• 2025 ITA Southeast Region Coach of the Year
• 2025 Peach Belt Conference Coach of the Year
• 2024 Peach Belt Conference Co-Coach of the Year
• 2023 Peach Belt Conference Coach of the Year
• 2019 Peach Belt Conference Co-Coach of the Year
• 2010 Atlantic Sun Conference Coach of the Year
• 2003 NAIA Region XII Coach of the Year
• 2003 Mid-South Conference Coach of the Year
Prior to Flagler
Puebla is currently working as the head tennis pro at the Glen Kernan Country Club in Jacksonville, Florida. Prior to that, he served as an assistant coach at Iowa State University in Ames (2011-13).
From 2008-11, Puebla was the head women's tennis coach at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville. He recruited the eventual two-time Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Year (Aline Berkenbrock) and was named the league's coach of the year in 2010. The 2010 Ospreys won the A-Sun title and became UNF's first tennis team to ever clinch a berth to the NCAA Tournament. Puebla had served as an assistant men's and women's coach at UNF from 2006-08.
Puebla had prior stints at the University of Texas-El Paso (2005-06) as an assistant women coach and as a graduate assistant coach at Columbus State University (2003-05). From 2001-03, Puebla served as the head women's tennis coach and the assistant men's coach at Pikeville (Ky.) College. In 2003, he was selected as the NAIA Region XII and the Mid-South Conference's Women's Tennis Coach of the Year. Puebla coached the league's player of the year, three first-team all-conference singles players and two first-team doubles players as the Bears advanced to the NAIA quarterfinals.
As a player, Puebla earned first-team All-Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference honors in 2000 in singles and doubles, after transferring in from Wallace State Community College in Hanceville, Alabama. The next season, he helped lead the Bears to the Mid-South title in their first year in the conference. Puebla earned all-conference honors in doubles and was an honorable mention selection as a singles player. Puebla helped lead Pikeville to consecutive NAIA Tournament appearances. He was inducted into Pikeville's Athletics Hall of Fame in 2013.
Personal
A native of Chile, Puebla graduated with a bachelor's in business management from Pikeville in 2002. He earned his master's in health services administration from Columbus State in 2005.
| Rodrigo Puebla's Coaching Record |
| Year |
Institution |
Conf. Record |
Overall Record |
Honors |
| 2002 |
Pikeville |
5-0 |
14-5 (.737) |
Mid-South Conf. Tourney Champs |
| 2003 |
Pikeville |
5-0 |
13-2 (.867) |
NAIA Region XII and MSC COY |
| 2009 |
North Florida |
8-2 |
16-5 (.762) |
|
| 2010 |
North Florida |
9-1 |
20-3 .870) |
NCAA D1 Tournament |
| 2011 |
North Florida |
8-2 |
15-7 (.682) |
|
| 2017 |
Flagler |
10-2 |
20-5 (.800) |
NCAA D2 regional |
| 2018 |
Flagler |
5-3 |
10-11 (.476) |
PBC Tournament |
| 2019 |
Flagler |
8-1 |
17-7 (.708) |
NCAA D2 regional; PBC Co-Coach of the Year |
| 2020 |
Flagler |
1-0 |
8-4 (.667) |
|
| 2021 |
Flagler |
7-1 |
16-5 (.762) |
NCAA D2 regional; PBC Tourn. champs |
| 2022 |
Flagler |
6-1 |
19-8 (.704) |
PBC regular season co-champs; NCAA D2 National Tourn. quarterfinal |
| 2023 |
Flagler |
7-0 |
22-5 (.815) |
PBC regular and post-season champs; NCAA D2 National Tourn. semifinal; PBC Coach of the Year |
| 2024 |
Flagler |
5-1 |
15-6 (.714) |
PBC regular season co-champs; NCAA D2 regional; PBC Co-Coach of the Year |
| 2025 |
Flagler |
5-1 |
23-6 (.793) |
PBC regular season co-champs; NCAA D2 Tourn. semifinal; PBC Coach of the Year; ITA Southeast Regional Coach of the Year |
|
Record at Pikeville |
10-0 (1.000) |
27-7 (.794) |
|
|
Record at UNF |
25-5 (.833) |
51-15 (.773) |
|
|
Record at Flagler |
54-10 (.844) |
151-57 (.726) |
|
|
Career Record |
89-15 (.856) |
260-79 (.767) |
|
