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25 T oni (Neykova) Bickford's path to the University of Iowa was a long distance leap of faith. She was a national tennis champion in her native Bul- garia, and a member of the National Team six consecu- tive years while playing in professional tournaments and maintaining her amateur status. "I graduated from high school when I was 17," said Bickford, a native of Plovdiv, Bulgaria. "At 19, I figured it was probably smart to go to college." She had a friend who had gone to the United States on a tennis scholarship, and Bickford decided that might be the way to go. "We sent emails to random universities," Bickford said. "We didn't know anything about the educational sys- tem. I would get emails back from coaches saying, 'OK, we don't have a full ride available.' I couldn't afford to go somewhere without a full ride." About that time, Bickford received a letter from the University of Iowa women's tennis program. It was part of a mass mailing that had been sent to select ranked European players asking if they were interested in play- ing collegiately. "I emailed back and said, 'Look, I want to come, do you have a scholarship for me?'" Bickford recalled. Iowa head coach Paul Wardlow emailed her back a few days later. "He said, 'Your rankings are great, I think you're going to be great with my team, we have a scholarship avail- able in January,'" Bickford recalled. "I said, 'OK, I'm going to come.'" She had several more phone calls with her future coach, making sure all the paperwork was in order. "In January, I hopped on an airplane and arrived in Iowa," Bickford said. "I had no idea where I was going. It was probably the best decision I've ever made in my life." Now the associate head women's tennis coach at Old Dominion, Bickford became a four-time All-Big Ten selection. On Sept. 1, she was inducted into the Iowa Varsity Club Hall of Fame. "I always say that I have Bulgaria blood, but am a Hawkeye heart," Bickford said. It all seemed easy in 1999, when Bickford was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year and was a first-team all- league selection. "My first semester there they would tell me, 'Tomor- row it's Northwestern or Wisconsin or Kansas,'" Bick- ford said. "And I was like, 'OK, we're playing someone? I didn't know anything. It was an adjustment the first year." Aer playing with no expectations as a freshman, that changed heading into her sophomore season. "Pressure rose, because people expected me to win, perform, and do everything I did my first year," Bick- ford said. "I made All-Big Ten again, but it was rough. I felt like I had so much that I had to show to my team- mates and coaches and friends." Bickford said she was a terrible doubles player when her college career started, but then came a magical pairing with Shera Wiegler. "Shera was made to play doubles," Bickford said. "We complemented each other. She was aggressive at the net; I was more of a setter from the baseline. I had a good short passing game." In 1999, Bickford and Wiegler were the first doubles tandem in program history to qualify for the NCAAs. ey did it again in 2000, when Wiegler was a senior. ey finished the season ranked 19th nationally in 1999 and 20th in 2000. Her career could have been sidetracked in the summer between her sophomore and junior seasons, when her father, Blagoy, passed away. "Part of me said maybe I should stay in Bulgaria and help my mom because she was all by herself," Bickford said. "But I knew my parents always wanted me to go to the United States, get an education, and play ten- nis. I thought I owed it to my dad to continue what I started." Bickford again was an All-Big Ten selection as a junior and senior, when she became the first player in pro- gram history to qualify for the NCAAs in singles. An economics major, she was about to enter the job market when Wardlow had an opening for an assistant coach. Bickford got a master's degree in athletic adminis- tration in 2006 while coaching at Iowa. In 2008, she decided she needed to expand her horizons. She was hired as the head women's tennis coach at the College of William and Mary in 2008. Aer three years there, which included marriage to her husband, Dave, Bickford joined the staff at Old Dominion.