Dr. Peter Mazula (2004) - Hall of Fame

Dr. Peter Mazula

Induction:
2004

In a day when collegiate head coaches were hired and fired in the same season, Dr. Peter Mazula persevered. In a time when winning was everything, he won. At a place where tennis was not a top priority, he built a powerhouse.

Mazula was hired as UNI's men's tennis coach in 1965, replacing the departed Bill Koll, and he held the position until retiring in the spring of 1993. He came to Cedar Falls in 1949 as the Director of Safety Education at Price Laboratory School and taught a class in driver's education at the college.

To say he was a successful coach would be an understatement of enormous magnitude. He is the winningest coach in UNI's history in any sport, posting a 640-204-3 record in 29 seasons. At the time of his retirement, his 640 victories were second only to Hawaii's Jim Schwitters' 646 victories for the most in NCAA tennis history. He had just one losing season. In 1966, his team posted a 5-7 record, but still won the North Central Conference Championship.

That was his first conference title - he went on to win 10 of the next 12 NCC crowns. He was named NCC Coach of the Year nine straight years between 1972-1980. In 1981, UNI joined the Association of Mid-Continent Universities and moved from NCAA Division II to Division I. He picked up another Coach of the Year Award in 1985 and a co-Coach of the Year Award in 1986. From 1985-88, Mazula's Panthers were the AMCU runners-up four straight times.

Besides coaching and teaching, he was a recognized official and was named to the Officials Hall of Fame by the Iowa Athletic Coaches Association in 1991. He officiated girls basketball, volleyball, softball and tennis and was a diving judge. He also officiated, on the boys' side, football, basketball, track, diving and tennis. He worked state tournaments in girls' and boys' basketball, volleyball, softball and football.

Mazula graduated from Cortland (N.Y.) State Teachers College in 1942 after playing four years on the Cortland team. He served in the U.S. Coast Guard from 1942-45. He received his masters from Teachers College, Columbia University, in 1946 and his E.D.D. from Columbia in 1954. He served as athletic director and tennis coach at the School of the Ozarks, Point Lookout, Mo., from 1946-48 before coming to UNI.

Mazula died Aug. 6, 1994, in Lakeville, Minn., following a heart attack.