Alumni Spotlight: Libby Doughty
January 13, 2021 | Women's Tennis
Southern California was prime real estate for tennis in the early years of UC Irvine. Names like Jean Nachand and Lindsay Morse paved the way in the 70s for the program under the guidance of head coach Doreen Irish. Irish continued the program's success into the 80s sometimes finding her future Anteaters in the most peculiar ways. Such is the case for one Anteater titleholder – Libby Doughty.
Growing up in Fountain Valley, she loved every minute of her Southern California upbringing and in a hotbed for tennis at the time.
"I tell this to everybody - where I am at professionally and personally is an indirect result of tennis. It has opened so many doors for me. I've just been blessed and it has been so much fun. My family joined Los Caballeros when we were younger, and it was one of the best things my folks did. All five kids would spend every summer there and play tennis and other sports. All of my siblings played in high school and some in college. I wouldn't change my childhood for any of it."
One of those memories was an exhibition tournament at the Anaheim Convention Center just a few months before school started. Still not sure where she would attend college, she found herself matched up against none other than Doreen Irish.
"She said to me, 'Libby, what do you think you're going to do for school after your senior year?' I said I've already graduated and waiting to hear back from Long Beach State. They had misplaced my application the first time around, and at this point I wasn't sure where I stood. She said, 'would you like to come to UCI?' And I said 'sure', and that was that."
A month later, Libby is in school as an Anteater. The beginning of a wonderful four years for her on the court, in the classroom, and experiencing everything UC Irvine had to offer.
"It was fantastic. Tim Tift, the AD at the time was awesome, I commuted for three years and then got to live on Balboa Island my senior year, and I loved the whole experience."
Her tennis career played out well finishing her senior year with a PCAA doubles title alongside UCI's winningest doubles players, Stephanie Rhorer, and Libby herself finished with 47 career doubles wins and a .671 win percentage, good for seventh-best in program history.
Libby looked back fondly on everything UC Irvine had to offer in her time as a student. She recalled all the great trips, especially to places like Berkeley, studying at the Bob's Big Boy that once stood near the Albertson's, and her big UCI duffle bag she would carry from class to class and through Aldrich Park. Libby even joked about the team's runs around Crawford Field.
"We would run around the field, and sometimes I would hide in the women's bathroom with my friend Kim and act like we ran laps, splashing water on our faces, and then catching up to everybody." Something that she would get called on years later by the coach.
"Having a sport at the time rounded everything out because UCI was such a commuter school. It made for such a richer experience, and if I had to do it all over again, I'd do the exact same thing."
Libby really focused on her love for numbers in the classroom. Without a business degree at UCI at the time, she wanted to study something along those lines that dealt with numbers so she dove into economics. While attending school, she worked locally at the Lindborg Racquet Club in Huntington Beach where the owner, Lenny Lindborg, offered a helping hand.
"Lenny reached out to his business partner in real estate development and got me my first 'real' job. So I literally had a job a week out of school."
That job stretched into an eight-year tenure for Libby who really put her number-crunching acumen to use. She became a financial advisor with Merrill Lynch following that.
"I love working with people and numbers so it was a win-win. Some of the biggest things you do in your life are getting married, buying a house, and invest for the future. It's an easy conversation to have with somebody."
Merrill Lynch also helped her meet her future husband, Tom, who was a collegiate athlete in his own right in crew. The two were married and had twins which dictated her schedule pretty much until they were off to preschool. After having a flexible schedule at Merrill Lynch, Libby wasn't going to go back to punching a clock.
"So with my background in real estate development and investments, I decided to become a realtor with Coldwell Banker Realty in Fashion Island. I've been in the business for over 13 years now. Dealing with real estate was very similar to what I was doing as an advisor. My knowledge and experience from Merrill Lynch is an additional benefit I bring to the table and helps me that much more with my clients. I'm a real people-person, and I believe that knowledge is power an the more I can share with my clients about the housing market, interest rates, possible tax ramifications, and the correct business environment will allow them to make educated decisions in regards to their real estate needs. This is very important to me. I pride myself on being very professional in working with my clients, and in how I run my business. Their trust in me means everything."
Leaps and bounds springing from the tennis community for Libby, and her connection with UCI has always remained strong. Coach Irish reined Libby back in about five years after graduating to help raise funds for the team, writing letters and reaching out to people, and playing in some fundraisers.
"That kind of got me into the food chain of working with the Athletic Foundation. They saw my face enough, and invited me to be on the athletic board for a while."
Libby spent about 10 years on the Athletics Foundation and part of the athletic board. She was even part of the hiring staff for Mike Edles. One of her longest connections to the program recently returned as an assistant on the men's side in Bruce Man Son Hing. She remembers very well all the time spent at the student center with Bruce sometimes betting their lunches playing Pac Man.
"Tennis has just been a blessing for me, I've always kept in touch with the UCI program. Over the years, I have regularly attended the women's and men's home matches. This past November, Bruce and I helped put together a fundraising golf tournament for the men's and women's programs which was a huge success with over 100 golfers. We were able to raise some monies for the programs, and we just did it because we've gotten so much out of tennis and out of UCI. It felt great to give back."
Even as she spoke she was dressed head-to-toe in UCI sweats and gear. She's still staying active by playing pickleball and doing CrossFit. Her family has been very close to sports and the program. Her son teamed up as a ball boy and bat boy for the Anteater basketball and baseball teams for a while.
"Interacting with Michael Wilder and seeing Mamadou play, they were right there. The first time my son Tommy saw Michael play, he asked if he could get his hair to look like that. My kids got exposed to college sports at an early age. I didn't step onto a college campus until I was 18. They were totally enthralled, sitting there courtside when being seven or eight years old. It doesn't get much better than that. UCI has treated me so well, and I love giving back to it. Go 'Eaters!"
Growing up in Fountain Valley, she loved every minute of her Southern California upbringing and in a hotbed for tennis at the time.
"I tell this to everybody - where I am at professionally and personally is an indirect result of tennis. It has opened so many doors for me. I've just been blessed and it has been so much fun. My family joined Los Caballeros when we were younger, and it was one of the best things my folks did. All five kids would spend every summer there and play tennis and other sports. All of my siblings played in high school and some in college. I wouldn't change my childhood for any of it."
One of those memories was an exhibition tournament at the Anaheim Convention Center just a few months before school started. Still not sure where she would attend college, she found herself matched up against none other than Doreen Irish.
"She said to me, 'Libby, what do you think you're going to do for school after your senior year?' I said I've already graduated and waiting to hear back from Long Beach State. They had misplaced my application the first time around, and at this point I wasn't sure where I stood. She said, 'would you like to come to UCI?' And I said 'sure', and that was that."
A month later, Libby is in school as an Anteater. The beginning of a wonderful four years for her on the court, in the classroom, and experiencing everything UC Irvine had to offer.
"It was fantastic. Tim Tift, the AD at the time was awesome, I commuted for three years and then got to live on Balboa Island my senior year, and I loved the whole experience."
Her tennis career played out well finishing her senior year with a PCAA doubles title alongside UCI's winningest doubles players, Stephanie Rhorer, and Libby herself finished with 47 career doubles wins and a .671 win percentage, good for seventh-best in program history.
Libby looked back fondly on everything UC Irvine had to offer in her time as a student. She recalled all the great trips, especially to places like Berkeley, studying at the Bob's Big Boy that once stood near the Albertson's, and her big UCI duffle bag she would carry from class to class and through Aldrich Park. Libby even joked about the team's runs around Crawford Field.
"We would run around the field, and sometimes I would hide in the women's bathroom with my friend Kim and act like we ran laps, splashing water on our faces, and then catching up to everybody." Something that she would get called on years later by the coach.
"Having a sport at the time rounded everything out because UCI was such a commuter school. It made for such a richer experience, and if I had to do it all over again, I'd do the exact same thing."
Libby really focused on her love for numbers in the classroom. Without a business degree at UCI at the time, she wanted to study something along those lines that dealt with numbers so she dove into economics. While attending school, she worked locally at the Lindborg Racquet Club in Huntington Beach where the owner, Lenny Lindborg, offered a helping hand.
"Lenny reached out to his business partner in real estate development and got me my first 'real' job. So I literally had a job a week out of school."
That job stretched into an eight-year tenure for Libby who really put her number-crunching acumen to use. She became a financial advisor with Merrill Lynch following that.
"I love working with people and numbers so it was a win-win. Some of the biggest things you do in your life are getting married, buying a house, and invest for the future. It's an easy conversation to have with somebody."
Merrill Lynch also helped her meet her future husband, Tom, who was a collegiate athlete in his own right in crew. The two were married and had twins which dictated her schedule pretty much until they were off to preschool. After having a flexible schedule at Merrill Lynch, Libby wasn't going to go back to punching a clock.
"So with my background in real estate development and investments, I decided to become a realtor with Coldwell Banker Realty in Fashion Island. I've been in the business for over 13 years now. Dealing with real estate was very similar to what I was doing as an advisor. My knowledge and experience from Merrill Lynch is an additional benefit I bring to the table and helps me that much more with my clients. I'm a real people-person, and I believe that knowledge is power an the more I can share with my clients about the housing market, interest rates, possible tax ramifications, and the correct business environment will allow them to make educated decisions in regards to their real estate needs. This is very important to me. I pride myself on being very professional in working with my clients, and in how I run my business. Their trust in me means everything."
Leaps and bounds springing from the tennis community for Libby, and her connection with UCI has always remained strong. Coach Irish reined Libby back in about five years after graduating to help raise funds for the team, writing letters and reaching out to people, and playing in some fundraisers.
"That kind of got me into the food chain of working with the Athletic Foundation. They saw my face enough, and invited me to be on the athletic board for a while."
Libby spent about 10 years on the Athletics Foundation and part of the athletic board. She was even part of the hiring staff for Mike Edles. One of her longest connections to the program recently returned as an assistant on the men's side in Bruce Man Son Hing. She remembers very well all the time spent at the student center with Bruce sometimes betting their lunches playing Pac Man.
"Tennis has just been a blessing for me, I've always kept in touch with the UCI program. Over the years, I have regularly attended the women's and men's home matches. This past November, Bruce and I helped put together a fundraising golf tournament for the men's and women's programs which was a huge success with over 100 golfers. We were able to raise some monies for the programs, and we just did it because we've gotten so much out of tennis and out of UCI. It felt great to give back."
Even as she spoke she was dressed head-to-toe in UCI sweats and gear. She's still staying active by playing pickleball and doing CrossFit. Her family has been very close to sports and the program. Her son teamed up as a ball boy and bat boy for the Anteater basketball and baseball teams for a while.
"Interacting with Michael Wilder and seeing Mamadou play, they were right there. The first time my son Tommy saw Michael play, he asked if he could get his hair to look like that. My kids got exposed to college sports at an early age. I didn't step onto a college campus until I was 18. They were totally enthralled, sitting there courtside when being seven or eight years old. It doesn't get much better than that. UCI has treated me so well, and I love giving back to it. Go 'Eaters!"
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