{{Short description|American tennis coach (1934–2026)}} {{Distinguish|Catherine Harrison (tennis)}} {{Use American English|date=March 2026}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2026}} {{Infobox tennis biography | name = Kitty Harrison | image = Kitty Harrison, The Chapel Hill News, 1980.jpg | alt = | caption = Harrison {{circa}} 1980 | residence = Chapel Hill, North Carolina, U.S. | full_name = Katherine Gordon Harrison | birth_date = {{birth date|1934|11|14}} | birth_place = Austin, Texas, U.S. | death_date = {{death date and age|2026|03|27|1934|11|14}} | death_place = | height = | college = Texas (BA, MA) | plays = | CoachYears = | CoachPlayers = North Carolina (1976–1998) | CoachingAwards = | CoachingRecords = | updated = }}
'''Katherine Gordon Harrison'''<!--<ref name="1955-01"/>--> (14 November 1934 – March 27, 2026) was an American college tennis coach who was the head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels women's tennis team from 1976 to 1998. At the time of her retirement, she was the most successful women's tennis coach within the Atlantic Coast Conference.
==Early life and education== Harrison grew up in Austin, Texas.<ref name="1955-01">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/austin-american-statesman-harrison/131339016/|title=Two Austin Girls Named Mortar Board Officers|date=May 18, 1955|newspaper=Austin American-Statesman|page=20|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> Her father, Thomas P. Harrison, went to college at the University of North Carolina.<ref name="1998-01"/><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-austin-american-sweet-briar/131357426/|title=Freshman Students Bound for Sweet Briar|date=August 26, 1952|newspaper=The Austin American|page=16|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> She took up tennis at age seven or eight and received instruction from University of Texas classics professor and longtime men's tennis coach D. A. Penick.<ref name="1998-01"/><ref name="1977-01">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/news-and-record-tennis/131352642/|title=Tennis|last=Northington|first=Tom|newspaper=News & Record|location=Greensboro, North Carolina|date=October 16, 1977|page=40|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> She played high school tennis for Austin High School and competed in local and state junior tournaments.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-austin-american-austin-tennis/131348669/|title=1950 Austin High Net Squad Is Strongest in Recent Years|last=Hilley|first=Lewis|date=April 8, 1951|page=44|newspaper=The Austin American|access-date=September 6, 2023}}</ref><ref name="1976-01">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-tar-heel-harrison/131345461/|title=Harrison, Hunter new coaches for women's tennis, field hockey|last=Biles|first=Dede|date=August 27, 1976|page=10|newspaper=The Daily Tar Heel|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> After a year of attending Sweet Briar College in Virginia, she transferred to the University of Texas,<ref name="1976-01"/> where she joined groups such as Kappa Kappa Gamma, the Mortar Board, the Orange Jackets, and Phi Beta Kappa.<ref name="1955-01"/><ref name="1998-01"/> There was no intercollegiate women's tennis program at Texas at the time, so she played on a club team.<ref name="1980-01">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-asheville-times-harrison/131344098/|title=Netters Rather Be In Asheville|last=Hamer|first=Jim|date=February 11, 1980|page=15|newspaper=The Asheville Times|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> She majored in history and philosophy, graduating with honors in 1956.<ref name="1998-01">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/winston-salem-journal-harrison/131351327/|title=Stepping Down|last=Garber|first=Mary|author-link=Mary Garber|date=April 26, 1998|page=51|newspaper=Winston-Salem Journal|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref><ref><!--for year-->{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-tar-heel-wten/131349876/|title=Cinda-lating Gurney ignites spark for women's tennis|last=Manuel|first=John C.|date=February 26, 1992|page=19|newspaper=The Daily Tar Heel|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>
After college, Harrison worked as a secretary in cities across the country.<ref name="1976-01"/> She eventually returned to the University of Texas to earn a master's degree in classics.<ref name="1976-01"/> In 1970, she enrolled in a classics PhD program at the University of North Carolina, but she left in the summer of 1974 after seeing how few teaching positions were open in the field.<ref name="1977-01"/><ref name="1976-01"/> She became certified as a tennis instructor after training at Dennis Van der Meer's tennis academy in Hilton Head, South Carolina, and began working as an assistant instructor at the Hollow Rock Racquet & Swim Club in Durham, North Carolina.<ref name="1976-01"/>
==Coaching career== Harrison began coaching the women's tennis program at the University of North Carolina in 1976–77, succeeding longtime coach Frances Hogan.<ref name="1976-01"/><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-chapel-hill-news-harrison/131350189/|title=Heels' Harrison Knows Her Netters Are Good|last=Collins|first=Dan|newspaper=The Chapel Hill News|date=September 17, 1976|page=8|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> This was initially a part-time job, and she continued to work at the tennis club in Durham, until she was hired full time for the 1979–80 season.<ref name="1980-01"/> Under Harrison, North Carolina won the first four ACC Championships, from 1977 to 1980, and finished runner-up four other times.<ref name="2004-01"/> Eight times, they finished the season ranked within the top 25 nationally, and she had only four losing seasons.<ref name="1998-01"/><ref name="2004-01"/> <!--She was part of the committee that ... Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center.--> Notable players for Harrison include <!--keep even if red links--> Kathy Barton; Cinda Gurney, the 1993 NCAA Women's Singles Championships runner-up; and Alisha Portnoy.<ref name="2004-01"/> She retired after the 1997–98 season, succeeded by Kansas coach Roland Thornqvist.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-chapel-hill-news-wten/131350467/|title=North Carolina a natural choice for Tigers' Hill|date=June 28, 1998|last=Jeffries|first=Anthony|newspaper=The Chapel Hill News|page=11|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> Sportswriter Mary Garber described her as "quiet and soft-spoken, but with a passion for tennis".<ref name="1998-01"/>
==<span class="anchor" id="Legacy"></span> Death and legacy== At the time of her retirement in 1998, Harrison was the winningest women's tennis coach in ACC history by dual match wins (with a record of about 360 wins, 225 losses).{{efn|Contemporary sources say 362 wins, 226 losses,<ref name="1998-01"/><ref name="2004-01"/> while later sources say 351 wins, 224 losses.<ref name="2017-01"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://goheels.com/news/2021/9/23/womens-tennis-kitty-harrison-invitational-returns-this-weekend|title=Kitty Harrison Invitational Returns This Weekend|date=September 23, 2021|publisher=University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Athletics|access-date=September 6, 2023}}</ref>}} This record was eventually broken by fellow North Carolina coach Brian Kalbas in 2017.<ref name="2017-01">{{cite web|url=https://goheels.com/news/2017/4/20/211566820.aspx|title=Kitty to Kalbas: Passing the Torch|date=April 20, 2017|publisher=University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Athletics|access-date=September 6, 2023}}</ref> She was inducted into the North Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame in 2004.<ref name="2004-01">{{cite web|url=https://goheels.com/news/2004/1/14/205484947.aspx|title=Former UNC Women's Tennis Coach Kitty Harrison Named to N.C. Hall of Fame|date=January 14, 2004|publisher=University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Athletics|access-date=September 6, 2023}}</ref>
The Kitty Harrison Invitational is an annual preseason women's college tournament held at the University of North Carolina since 2004.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://goheels.com/news/2004/11/3/205466016.aspx|title=UNC Women's Tennis Hosts Kitty Harrison Invitational|date=November 3, 2004|publisher=University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Athletics|access-date=September 6, 2023}}</ref> Also named after Harrison is the North Carolina women's tennis team's most valuable player award.<ref name="2017-01"/>
Harrison died on March 27, 2026.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://goheels.com/news/2026/3/27/mens-tennis-mten-recap-vs-wake-forest|title=Top-Ranked Deacons Down Men's Tennis, 4-0|date=March 27, 2026|publisher=North Carolina Tar Heels|access-date=March 28, 2026}}</ref>
==Notes== {{Notelist}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons category}} * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UmaSvwWiaeY Kitty Harrison – North Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame] (video on YouTube, 1:04)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Kitty}} Category:1934 births Category:2026 deaths Category:20th-century American sportswomen Category:American female tennis players Category:North Carolina Tar Heels women's tennis coaches Category:Tennis coaches from Texas Category:Tennis players from Austin, Texas Category:University of Texas at Austin alumni