Angelo State University Athletics

Head Coach Chris Bizot enters his sixth season in charge of the Belle Tennis program in 2022-23. Bizot, who has been the Belles’ head coach since resurrecting the program in 2017-18, has led the Belles to three LSC Regular Season Championships and three appearances at the NCAA South Central Regional. As a head coach, he has a career record of 528-227 (.699).

Bizot, the 2021 LSC Coach of the Year, has amassed a 76-27 record for the Belles, good enough for a .738 winning percentage. He has been named the South Central Region Coach of the Year twice (2019 and 2021) and has coached 25 All-LSC selections, five LSC Superlative Award winners, two LSC Players of the Year, and three ITA All-Americans. 

The Belles three-peated as conference champions in 2022, going 16-8 overall and 8-1 in conference play, earning another trip to the NCAA South Central Regional. Top singles player Dianela Rodriguez was named the conference's player of the year after going 23-6 in singles action and is the only player in program history to win nine singles matches in LSC play. 

The Belles repeated as conference champions in 2021, going 15-4 overall and 9-0 in conference play. They won 11 matches in a row from March 5th through the end of the regular season on April 25th. The Belles also earned their first NCAA Postseason win with a 4-0 victory over Texas A&M-Kingsville.

The 2019 season saw Bizot lead the Belles to a 20-5 overall record and a perfect 6-0 record in conference play. The Belles earned the LSC Regular Season Championship and the top seed in the NCAA South Central Regional in their first postseason appearance. Valentina Gonzalez was named the conference's newcomer and player of the year and would be named an ITA All-American, the first singles player to do so in program history. 

Before his time at Angelo State, Bizot was the head coach for 12 years at UT Tyler. He coached the men’s and women’s tennis programs to 16 conference championships and 17 NCAA Division III tournament appearances. He led the Patriots to a combined 24 winning seasons and a 400-153 record. He has amassed an overall record of 452-200 in 14 years as a head tennis coach.

During Bizot’s time at UT Tyler, the 19-time American Southwest Conference Coach of the Year led the Patriots to nine-straight NCAA Division III Tournament appearances from 2008 to 2016 and won 16 of 18 conference championships in the men’s and women’s combined. Four of his teams advanced to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Division III national tournament. He was named the West Region Coach of the Year by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association in 2008 and 2012.

A total of nine student-athletes were named NCAA All-Americans, and eight individuals advanced to the national tournament under Bizot. He has had 11 American Southwest Conference East Division Players of the Year, 11 ASC East Division Newcomers of the Year, and 10 ASC East Division Freshman of the Year. Over 150 student-athletes earned all-conference honors during his tenure, and over 100 were academic all-conference selections. A total of 60 student-athletes were named scholar-athletes by the ITA, and two of his students were selected for NCAA post-graduate scholarships. Three of his players were selected as ITA Arthur Ashe Regional Winners, and one earned the prestigious national Arthur Ashe Award for Leadership and Sportsmanship.

Before UT Tyler, Bizot guided the men’s and women’s programs at Palm Beach Atlantic. In 2004 he coached the Palm Beach women to the National Christian College Athletic Association’s national championship.

Bizot also spent two years as an assistant tennis coach at his alma mater, Mississippi College.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in administration of justice and a master’s degree in history from Mississippi College, where he was a four-year team captain. He and his wife Rachel have two children, Camden and Bryson.