Charleston

Head Coach: Bruce Zimmerman (6th season)

Conference Finish: Women: T 10th out of 11; Men: 9th out of 10 (Colonial Athletic Association)

Coach Bruce Zimmerman returns for his sixth year at the helm of the men and women’s swimming program at the College of Charleston. This year he returns 19 ladies to his roster, but lists no freshman on his roster as his team heads into the CCSA for it’s first season. The men return 21 and, like the ladies, have yet to list any incoming freshman. Both teams are looking forward to new starts in their new conference.

Davidson

Head Coach: John Young (2nd season)

Conference Finish: Women: 7th out of 11; Men: 7th out of 10 (Colonial Athletic Association)

Returning for his second year at the helm, head coach John Young looks to take both the men and women of Davidson from the middle of the Colonial Athletic Association to the top of the CCSA. On the ladies side, 16 athletes return to compete for Young, who will look to his team to make up for the loss of senior leadership as captains Eleanor Trefzger, Christie Brough, and Bridget Barry move on. Some standouts to look for next year will be Courtney Sanders (free/fly), Alanna Ream (free), and diver Stephanie McKinney.

The men will also return a large number of swimmers, but will lose a few points, as they return 14, but lose 6 to graduation. Former captains Andrea Edelman (free), Jamie Hopkins (breast/IM), and Fiete Steggger (free/IM) will be big losses. Coach Young will look to junior standouts Scott Frantz (back) and Merritt Peele (free) to provide leadership and experience to the Wildcats as they venture into the CCSA this season.

Florida A&M

Head Coach: Ian Lee

Conference Finish: Women: 14th out of 14 Men: 3rd out of 4 (Northeast conference)

Florida A&M had 16 on the roster last year, 5 women and 11 men. The ladies graduated 2, Aquila Pinnix and Dominique Pete, both competed for the Rattlers on relays at the conference championships.

The men had a little more depth to choose from, and with that came a third place finish at conference. On the men’s side, Coach Lee will return a large number of the Rattler’s top conference performers including conference champions William McKnight (1 and 3-meter boards) and Mujahld El-Amin. Coach Lee will lose only one competitor to graduation, Roderick Barnett, and will return 10 conference participants.

Florida Gulf Coast

Head Coach: Neal Studd (1st season)

In the team’s inaugural season, the Florida Gulf Coast will turn to first year coach Neal Studd, formerly of Florida Atlantic University. Chosen in July of 2006 to put together a team, Studd has set up a tough schedule, recruited a large team, which will be a major advantage in a conference where several teams have fewer then 15 on their combined roster. In contrast Studd has brought in 22 freshman, and 2 juniors to provide a little college leadership. Studd has done an excellent job setting the stage for his ladies to surprise a fair amount of people at the conference championship, as well as establish a really good program. We wish this fledgling program the best of luck this season.

Gardner-Webb

Head Coach: Mike Simpson (9th season)

Conference Finish: Women 1st out of 14 (northeast)

Nine years ago, coach Mike Simpson came to Gardner-Webb to create a swimming program, building it from scratch, you could say that he has done an outstanding job. Simpson has now led the ladies of Gardner-Webb to five consecutive conference championships in the Northeast conference and he looks to do the same as the school enters the CCSA this season. Also new this season is a Gardner-Webb men’s program. Looking to follow in the successful footsteps of the ladies side, Simpson has already brought in 11 recruits, including an upperclassman transfer from SMU (Patrick Elerding).

Simpson leads a young team into their new conference home with 12 freshmen, but returns a core group of upperclassmen to show these young ladies the ropes. Key returnees will include distance specialist Heather Roka, Whitney Hooley (back), and fliers Carrie Kibler, Whitney Beachum, and Leslie Hallquist. Perhaps the greatest obstacle to overcome this season will be the loss of All-American and NEC record holder Terra Wilson, a standout performer in the freestyle and on the relays for the past four years. Simpson, will look to continue to build the Gardner-Webb program, using the new conference as a way to gain experience and catapult more of his swimmers up to the national level.

As most schools across the country are dropping their men’s programs, Gardner-Webb is going against the grain as they add a men’s side to their already very competitive women’s program. Coach Simpson is excited to lead another team and is looking to continue his usual trend of success, saying "The addition brings a different dimension to our program and to the University. I am confident we can have the same success academically and athletically that we’ve enjoyed with the women’s program for the past seven years, and this will provide a solid opportunity for young men to continue their swimming careers on the collegiate level." With 19 on the roster, the men of Gardner-Webb will already be one of the largest team in the conference.

Georgia Southern

Head Coach: Nate Kellogg (4th season)

Conference Finish: Women: 2nd of 14 (northeast)

Nate Kellogg has the Georgia Southern Eagles moving in the right direction. During his four year tenure, Kellogg has seen 7 school records fall, lead the team to a school high second place finish in their conference, had 11 swimmers named to the All – NEC team and had freshman, Mackenzie Garrot, named Outstanding Rookie of the Meet at the NEC championships. This year, as the team moves into a newer, more competitive conference, Kellogg will again turn to the teams depth and dedication to improvement to set a higher standard in the team’s new conference.

Garrot lead the Eagles by sweeping the breaststrokes at last year’s championship. She was assisted by Courtney Martz, a top-3 finisher in the sprint frees and the 100 fly. Both will return for the Eagles next year. Suffering no significant losses, while bringing in 6 freshmen, Kellogg and the Eagles look to make a major splash in their new conference and will immediately compete for the top spot in the conference.

Howard

Head Coach: Shaffer’s Rawlings

Conference Finish: Women: 8th out 14; Men: 4th of 4 (Northeast)

Coach Rawlings can afford to give his swimmers a lot of individual attention as he has only 10 swimmers on his combined roster, all of which are either juniors or seniors. Howard is one of only three historically African American schools whose athletic department provides a scholarship-swimming program.

Howard’s men’s team has some outstanding performers, with a history of standout performances. Isaiah Allen swept the freestyle events at the conference meet, winning the 50, 100, and 200 in school record time and will return this year for his junior season. Senior Shaun Armstrong returns to defend his breaststroke titles after winning both distances at conference, while Miquel Orellane is absent from the ‘tentative’ roster.

On the Ladies side, Coach Rawlings loses butterflier and relay standout Nadya Nicholas, but returns Aminah Murphy, Khalilah Robinson, and Nzingha Murphy. It will be interesting to see what coach Rawlings has in store for his small, yet deeply talented teams in this new conference.

North Carolina A&T State

Head Coach: Shawn Hendrix (10th season)

Conference Finish: Women: 10th out of 14 (Northeast)

Head Coach Shawn Hendrix is looking to create a few more traditions for her Lady Aggies, as they enter into the inaugural season of the CCSA, like many of the other programs joining this new conference, North Carolina A&T State was looking for more competitive programs closer to home. Hendrix’s team is young this year with 8 out of their 13 swimmers in their first or second year with the school. Look for returnees Jewel Wright (back) and Vinetae Wynn (sprints) to lead this young program through the growing process, as both the ladies and coach Hendrix gain valuable experience at a higher level.

Radford

Head Coach: Randy Jarman (1st season)

Conference Finish: Women 6th of 14 (Northeast)

The Radford University Highlanders are going through a lot of firsts this year as they move from the Northeast conference into the newly established CCSA and hire a new coach in Randy Jarman. Jarman, a former assistant at North Carolina, brings a long history of coaching experience and looks to breath life into a team that lives in the middle of the conference. Moving up will be tough this year as the Highlanders loss senior standout, Kelly Wallace, a top 3 conference finisher in two events last season, as well as a member of the school record setting 4x200 free relay. The team will also loss Libby Heeschen, a top 8 freestyler, as well as an outstanding relay swimmer. The team will return 13 from last season including three top 8 conference finishers, Kyndal Spradlin (back/breast), Chrisitina Reyes (fly), and diver Ayers Gilman. Look for Jarman’s five incoming freshman to help the team move forward, in their new home.

Virginia Military Institute

Head Coach: Bill Nicholson (6th season)

Conference Finish: Women: 13th of 14; Men: 1st of 4 (Northeast)

On the men’s side, VMI was becoming a dominant power in the Northeast Conference, winning their second straight conference title and defeating the runner up by over 300 points. This year they take their immense depth into a new conference to face new foes and new challenges. VMI swimming and diving coach Bill Nicholson recently commented on the move saying "This is a step up for our program here at VMI and we are looking forward to getting up on the blocks and racing against the higher level of competition the CCSA will present us."

For the past two years, depth has been the name of the game for the Keydets. Last year, as a whole, the team won only 3 out of 20 events at the conference championship, yet still walked away well out in front. Coach Nicholson lost six to graduation, including Kevin Vik, who won the only 2 individual victories the Keydets had as well as being a major player on their winning 800 free relay. Coach Nicholson will turn to an outstanding and deep sophomore class of Philip Sgrignoli (fly/IM), Will Rowcliffe (sprints), and Jeff Turner (diver) to make up for the loss, as well as lead the team into a new conference and a new season.

The ladies of VMI are in the process of building a team and as they enter their fourth season, Coach Nicholson is in the process of making some great strides forward. Finishing 13th out of 14 teams last season; the lady Keydets lose two conference relay scorers in Erin Hottle and Catrina Helsel. Juniors Becky Harris and Ateala Tuff return to lead the team and establish their own tradition of excellence.