Lyle Guenther

Teacher/Coach 1959-1994 Lyle Guenther taught mathematics at Ottawa Township High School for 35 years, and coached at OTHS over a span of 7 decades, beginning in 1959. During that period he served at times as head coach, and at times as assistant coach, for both the boy’s and girl’s tennis teams, with the teams combined emerging as IHSA Sectional Champions 69 times which represents 73.4% of the Sectionals in which they competed, with the teams finishing in the top 10 at the IHSA State Tournament 19 times. He also was an assistant coach in basketball and wrestling. Lyle Guenther received the John J. Walsh Award at LPO Jr. College (now IVCC) as the outstanding student-athlete in 1956, lettering in football, basketball, baseball, and tennis. He similarly received the outstanding student-athlete award at Illinois State University in 1958, lettering in basketball and tennis, where he was also the captain and MVP of the tennis team. Lyle Guenther was chosen as the IHSA Girl’s Assistant Tennis Coach of the Year in 1988, and inducted into the IHSA Tennis Coach’s Hall of Fame in 1990. He has served on the IHSA Tennis Tournament Advisory Committee, was a founding member of the Illinois High School Tennis Coaches Association, and served as the Northern Illinois Tennis Association Jr. Davis Cup Coach. As a tennis player, he was consistently ranked in both singles and doubles by the Northern Illinois Tennis Association, and the Western (now Midwest) Section of the United States Tennis Association. He and his son Mark earned National USTA rankings in the father and son division, achieving a ranking of 21st in the country in 1990, and 12th in 1991.