In looking for someone to take charge of its women's tennis program for the long term, Hillsdale College didn't have to go far to find a quality candidate to move into the role.

Melanie Zampardo, a former Hillsdale College women's tennis star and an assistant coach for the Chargers this past season, has been named Hillsdale's third women's tennis coach since the program was restarted in 2010, taking over for Nikki Walbright, who was interim head coach of the program for the 2024-25 season. Walbright will remain an Associate Athletic Director and Senior Woman's Administrator at Hillsdale College, and will continue to assist the women's tennis program in an advisory capacity as the Director of Tennis.

Zampardo may be a young candidate, but she's spent her most of her life in tennis, and several years as a part of the Hillsdale College women's tennis program as both a player and coach. She worked closely with Walbright in 2024-25, helping the Chargers to their best overall record and regular season G-MAC finish since the 2018-19 season while taking on increasing levels of responsibility as the season wore on.

"This is such an incredible opportunity, and it's one I am extremely grateful to be given," Zampardo said. "I've been blessed with a great mentor in Coach Nikki (Walbright), who modeled for me what a successful women's tennis coach and program looks like this past season, and with great support from (Director of Athletics) John Tharp, who's giving me this chance.

"Working with Coach Nikki this past season gave me great first-hand experience in coaching that I can draw on for this role, and she's really given me the confidence that I'm ready to take on this challenge."

Along with a successful season as an assistant, Zampardo excelled on the court for the Chargers women's tennis program as a player across three seasons. Originally recruited to Wayne State, Zampardo transferred into Hillsdale for the 2021-22 season and instantly became a lineup mainstay once eligible to play for the Chargers. Over three seasons in blue and white, Zampardo recorded 67 match wins while playing No. 2 and No. 3 singles and No. 1 and No. 2 doubles for the Chargers, earning second team All-G-MAC honors all three seasons. Her senior season in 2023-24 was the best campaign of her career, as she finished with a career-high 27 total victories between singles and doubles play and formed a doubles team with sophomore Megan Hackman that spent much of the season in the Midwest Regional rankings and was nationally ranked for multiple weeks. Along with her individual success, she also helped the Chargers reach the semifinal round of the G-MAC Tournament for three straight seasons, continuing a streak that has now reached seven straight campaigns after this past season.

Her significant tennis knowledge and her leadership on and off the court made her an attractive assistant coaching candidate after her career had finished, and, with another year of development, stood out to Director of Athletics John Tharp as he was seeking a long-term occupant of the head coaching role in the Hillsdale College women's tennis program.

"I've known Melanie for a few years now, and what has always stood out to me as both a player and a coach is her intelligence, her passion and her drive to compete and improve," Tharp said. "She's someone who not only understands the game of tennis but also understands Hillsdale College and this program, and what it takes to succeed here as a player.

"We're hiring someone with great character who understands what it means to compete at this level, and who just keeps getting better and better as a leader and a teacher with every season she's around the sport. Those things are really important to our department and made Melanie the perfect fit for our program."

Zampardo hopes to hit the ground running this fall, with a strong lineup of players slated to return that she already knows very well. 

"Our two returning seniors (Isabella Spinazze and Megan Hackman) are both great leaders, and I know they're excited about the possibilities ahead next season," Zampardo said. "We've got Ane (Dannhauser) returning who's been such a huge part of our success over the last two years and who is excited to take on more of a leadership role as well entering her junior season, and both of our sophomores, Briana (Rees) and Julia (Zlateva) had great first seasons and are going to be huge for our team next year.

"We're adding some strong freshmen as well. I think, on paper, we've got a really strong and exciting squad and I can't wait to get to work with this group."

An excellent student at Hillsdale, Zampardo was a two-time ITA Scholar-Athlete and graduated cum laude with a Bachelor's Degreee in Exercise Science earlier this year. Originally hailing from Grosse Pointe, Michigan, Zampardo is an alumnus of University Liggett High School in Grosse Pointe Woods, where she was team MVP all three seasons and played in the MHSAA Division 4 state championship match at No. 1 singles as a senior in 2019.