TCH STAFF
Alex Stoler - Managing Director
Alex comes to the Tennis Club of Hastings offering a great wealth of experience teaching all ages and levels from beginners to nationally ranked juniors. A dynamic coach and voracious student of the game, Alex’s style holistically blends an inner game approach with a strong focus on fundamentals and technique. After an accomplished junior career, Alex went on to New York University, earning All-American status, captaining his team in his senior season. Before coming to TCH, Alex was a staff professional at Proform Tennis Academy in Rye Brook, held the Head Pro position at Roton Point Association in Rowayton, CT for four summers, and was Director of Tennis at Knollwood Country Club in 2019. Alex is a certified PTR professional.
Guido Margiotta - Director of Player Development
Guido oversees the development and implementation of the junior tennis program, which serves over 300 young players of various skill levels and backgrounds. He has a master's degree in Applied Sports and Performance Psychology from the University of Western States, and a bachelor's degree in Psychology from Shaw University. He is currently on the road to becoming a Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC). Guido has extensive experience coaching elite junior players and a proven track record in helping them achieve national and international rankings. After beginning his coaching career at the John McEnroe Tennis Center he was a travelling coach for ITF players and spent two years coaching at the Barcelona Tennis Academy where he had the opportunity to train professional players. He believes in a holistic approach to development, incorporating strength and conditioning, scouting, and mental coaching. Guido is extremely passionate about helping young athletes reach their full potential and enjoy the game of tennis.
On the rare occasions he is not on the court, Guido enjoys playing music and reading.
Barry Sherman - Senior Professional / Tennis Programming Coordinator
Barry was born and raised in New York and started playing tennis at the age of 4 where he was taught by his parents who were both long time players. Barry played competitive tennis all through high school and in college at SUNY Buffalo. While in college Barry started teaching tennis during school breaks and summers. After a long break while tackling other careers he got back into coaching and over the last decade has coached college tennis and varsity high school. Barry is passionate about the game of tennis and loves sharing his knowledge with others.
When he is not on the court teaching, Barry enjoys all kinds of fitness from training at the gym with weights to biking and hiking.
Tomas Fernandez - Senior Professional / Accounting Assistant
A native of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tomas quickly rose up the junior circuit becoming a semi-finalist at the Spain F6 Futures Doubles Tournament. He went on to compete in multiple ATP, Challenger and Futures level events achieving an ATP Doubles Ranking of 1518. Throughout this time he also trained with and worked as a hitting partner for Juan Monaco and Diego Schwartzman, two of Argentina’s greatest tennis players and both top 10 ATP ranked. He then joined the Division I Alabama State University, captaining them to three straight Division I Conference Championships (SWAC) while achieving All Conference for singles and doubles as well as MVP at the 2018 SWAC Championships. After college, Tomas spent time coaching at The Creek Club in Locust Valley, NY before returning to his alma mater as a Graduate Assistant Coach. While back at ASU, the team achieved their best record in school history going undefeated in their conference, earning their first ever NCAA D1 Ranking (#75) and securing a spot in the NCAA tournament. Tomas is an enthusiastic and focused coach who enjoys building strong connections with his players along the learning process and seeing them reach their maximum potential. When he is not on the court Tomas is in the club office assisting the Managing Director with book keeping and budgeting ensuring finances are in order.
In his spare time Tomas relaxes by watching films & TV shows, reading, writing and taking pictures. He enjoys working out and jogging along the Hudson River.
George Darko - Senior Professional
Born in Accra, Ghana, George showed tremendous talent early on and received an invitation to train at the Aviation Social Center under the guidance of top African coach Richard Ayi Dartey. That decision paid off as George quickly established himself as a top junior and embarked on a successful junior career with highlights including team selection for Davis Cup Africa Zone Group III, National Team Ghana, Training Tour at the ITF Center in Morocco and a Gold Medal Recipient at the All African Games. In 2015 George was awarded the Unsung Hero by the Ghana Sports Excellence Committee and finished the year with an ATP world ranking of 2069.
George brings tremendous energy, a great attitude and lots of fun onto the court every time.
Dwayne Smith - Staff Professional
Dwayne was born in Jamaica and raised in the Bronx, NY where he started playing tennis at age 11. He has tremendous experience coaching juniors and adults and believes passionately in the ability of tennis to build character and resilience. This belief inspires him to teach the game and help all of his students grow as players and citizens.
In his spare time, Dwayne enjoys cooking, making music, and spending time at the beach.
Stuart Jakub - Junior Professional / Marketing & Events
Stu is a passionate tennis player and coach who rediscovered his love for the sport in 2022 when he moved to Irvington. After joining TCH as a Diamond Member, he quickly became deeply involved in the community, captaining several of the clubs USTA adult league teams and running multiple in-house tennis tournaments. His commitment to the improvement of his own game and the development of others led him to take things to the next level by earning his USPTA coaching certificate. As a coach, Stu specializes in working with green ball players, guiding them through skill-building drills and fun point-play games in his energized classes. When not on the court he works closely with club management to schedule and promote club events, including USTA and UTR tournaments.
You can often find Stu on the court but when he is not at the club he enjoys spending time with his family and friends in the RiverTowns community.