The Truman athletics department announced today that swimming head coach Colleen Murphy and her husband, assistant coach Joe Fanthorp, will be resigning their positions. The two will be moving to Phoenix, Ariz., where Murphy has accepted an athletics director position at the high school level.

"This was a very hard decision for me," said Murphy. "I love this team and I am so proud of their hard work and dedication in the pool and in the classroom. But, there always comes a point in your life that you have to make hard decisions. I am proud of what we have achieved at Truman and I believe they will continue to succeed at a very high level. At this point in my life, I need to explore my options away from the pool and move closer to my family."

"I would like to thank the Truman Athletic Department and the university community as a whole for their support of Bulldog Swimming. I will truly miss the amazing group of people we have at Truman and the dedication the students, faculty and staff have to being a top academic and athletic institution. Most of all, I will miss my swimmers. I have a great group of athletes here that I will miss tremendously."

"I am extremely disappointed to see Coach Murphy leave," said Director of Athletics Jerry Wollmering. "She and Joe did an outstanding job with both the men's and women's program and they will truly be missed around the Truman natatorium. I want to thank Colleen and Joe for their contributions to the athletics program."

Murphy, who also served as Truman's Senior Women's Administrator, and Fanthorp have played big roles in Truman becoming the top women's swimming program in NCAA Division II, as well as also having one of the top men's programs in the country.

Murphy was an assistant coach at Truman from 1999-2001, helping the women's team finish second in the nation in 2000 and winning their first national title in 2001. After being an assistant coach at Iowa during the 2001-02 season, she returned to Kirksville after being named head coach in 2002.

In three years with Murphy as head coach, the women's team has won the national championship every year, pushing its overall national championship streak to five straight seasons. Murphy was named the CSCAA National Coach of the Year after each of the national titles.

In each of those three seasons, Truman has taken the maximum number of 18 swimmers to nationals, with all but one of those returning with all-American honors. Truman women's swimmers have won six individual NCAA titles and nine relay national crowns under Murphy.

The men's team has also had success under Murphy, finishing 12th in the nation in 2003, 16th in 2004 and 10th this past season. The Bulldogs took nine men to nationals this past season and all of them earned all-American honors, led by the third-place 200 free relay team.

Fanthorp has been with Truman for the last four seasons as an assistant coach, working especially with the sprinters and breaststrokers.

Truman will immediately begin a nation-wide search for a new head coach.

"We have an outstanding opportunity for someone to take over a highly respected program with student-athletes who have achieved high marks both athletically and academically," said Wollmering.