Carrying over from his time as a player, Kethan Darbar still hasa fire burning inside of him that he has chosen to pass along tostudent-athletes as a coach. After joining King University in May2010, the fourth-year head coach guided the men to their firstConference Carolinas Tournament win and women to their firstConference Carolinas Tournament berth in 2013-14.
The Tornado men closed the season on a hot streak, winnningtheir last nine regular season matches before winning theirConference Carolinas Tournament Quarterfinal match over ErskineCollege to run their winning streak to 10 matches. The win markedthe first time in three years the men had won a ConferenceCarolinas Tournament match. King ended the season with an overallrecord of 14-8 while going 6-2 in league play to earn the secondseed in the tournament. A season after the Tornado women wentwinlees, Darbar led King to a 9-15 overall record, including a markof 3-6 in Conference Carolinas play. That record gave King theseventh seed, and their first-ever Conference Carolinas Tournamentberth.
Darbar led the 2012-13 men's squad to their second consecutiveConference Carolinas Tournament appearance in their second year inthe league. The Tornado posted an overall record of 11-10 whilegoing 5-5 in conferece play. Under Darbar's tutelage, Rodrigo Avilawas named first team All-Conference Carolinas for the secondconsecutive season.
In his first year after taking over the Tornado program, Darbarled the men’s team to a Conference Carolinas Tournament berthin its first year as a member school after a successful regularseason. Led by All-Conference honorees Rodrigo Avila and PabloVidal, the Tornado began the 2011-12 season on a 10-match winningstreak and finished the year 13-5. Eight of his student-athletes,including the entire men’s starting lineup, were named to theConference Carolinas All-Academic Team while Avila was namedScholar-Athlete of the Year in men’s tennis.
Darbar came to King from Lambuth University in Jackson, Tenn.,where he led the men’s and women’s programs for twoseasons. While with the Eagles, he coached his teams to a combined21-33 record, 11-15 on the men’s side and 10-18 leading thewomen while the University made the transition from NAIA to NCAAstatus. In 2010-11, the men went 6-10 marking the most wins for theteam in over 11 years. The women won five matches each season underDarbar’s guidance, the most since the 2004 season.
He was a member of the Lambuth men’s tennis team from2005-09. Darbar graduated with a Bachelor of Science in SportManagement in 2009. Upon graduation he became an assistant at hisalma mater, a position he held for one season before being elevatedto head coach in 2010.
The Sao Paulo, Brazil native spent time at the EGA TennisAcademy as a professional tennis player in his hometown. Whilethere he helped mentor younger players and competed in nationaltournaments throughout Brazil and South America. Darbar alsocompeted in International Tennis Federation Futures events.
