Phil Spiniello has been hired as an assistant swimming coach at the University of North Carolina, head coach Rich DeSelm announced Thursday.
Spiniello comes to Chapel Hill following a five-year tenure as Rutgers University head women’s swimming and diving coach, an era that saw tremendous growth and success in the program.
"I am extremely excited to be working alongside Coach DeSelm and the outstanding staff he has assembled at UNC,” said Spiniello. “I have known Rich for some time and we share a similar philosophy and vision for developing student-athletes. I look forward to working with him, the student-athletes and everyone in the athletic department. I have great respect for the kind of program and the level of excellence that exists in the UNC swimming and diving program. My wife Trina and I are looking forward to being a part of the Tar Heel family and the UNC community."
Spiniello arrived at Rutgers in 2010 and made an immediate impact on the program. Overall, a total of 13 Rutgers school records were established under Spiniello's guidance, most of which were reset on an annual basis during his time as head coach. Spiniello also sent five different student-athletes to the NCAA Championships, including an honorable mention All-America, diver Nicole Scott.
“We are thrilled to add Phil Spiniello to our coaching staff,” said UNC head coach Rich DeSelm. “Phil has tremendous experience as both an NCAA Division I assistant and head coach and will be a great asset to our program. He has coached outstanding swimmers at a variety of tremendous institutions. Phil has a strong skill set that will show up in his coaching, recruiting, team building and administrative duties at UNC. Our team members and staff are all excited by his decision to join us in Chapel Hill.”
This past year, Spiniello guided Rutgers through its inaugural season in the Big Ten Conference, breaking five school records along the way. At the Big Ten Championships, the relay quartet of Greta Leberfinger, JoAnna Wu, Morgan Pfaff and Sarah Coyne set new RU standards in the 200-yard and 400-yard medley relays. Individually, Leberfinger broke the school record in the 200-yard breaststroke en route to second-team All-Big Ten honors. Freshman Addison Walkowiak contributed to the team’s success with a program-best championship score in one-meter diving.
At the conclusion of the year, the program sent both a swimmer and a diver to the NCAA Championships for the second consecutive year. Greta Leberfinger represented Rutgers in the 100-yard and 200-yard breaststroke events, while diver Addison Walkowiak participated in one-meter diving and platform diving.
During the prior year, Spiniello sent swimmer Joanna Wu and diver Nicole Scott to the 2014 NCAA Championships. Scott finished 16th in the platform event to earn honorable mention All-America honors. In doing so, she became the first Scarlet Knight to earn All-America status since 2008. It marked the second consecutive year Scott earned a trip to the national meet. Wu earned the right to compete in both the 100-yard and 200-yard backstroke events at NCAAs, making her the first swimmer under Spiniello to qualify and marking the first time since 2008 that two Scarlet Knights advanced to the Championships.
In 2014, Rutgers grabbed a third-place finish at the inaugural American Athletic Conference Championships, marking RU's best finish at a conference meet since the 2006-07 campaign. Wu captured the 100-yard and 200-yard backstroke AAC titles, becoming Rutgers’ first conference champion since the 2008-09 season. RU broke a total of nine school records during the season, including six in individual swimming events, two in diving events and in the 400-yard medley relay. At the conclusion of the season, Spiniello was named the AAC Coach of the Year. Rutgers concluded the 2013-14 regular season with a 9-4-1 record in dual-meet competitions.
Outside of the pool, the Scarlet Knights have seen numerous accomplishments in the classroom. The team has was named a College Swimming Coaches Association of America Scholar All-America Team for three years in a row from 2012-14.
In the 2012-13 season, Spiniello led the squad to a fifth-place finish in the BIG EAST Championships. Diver Nicole Scott led RU with a gold medal performance in the platform finals. Scott would go on to win silver at the Zone A Diving Championships and compete in the NCAA Championships. The Scarlet Knights finished the regular season 9-2 overall and 2-1 in conference action. The team's win total matched that of Spiniello's second year, which marked the most victories for the program since 2001. Additionally, the Scarlet Knights went on to break four school records during the course of the season. The 2011-12 team also won nine dual meets en route to a 9-2 overall record and a 4-0 mark in the BIG EAST.
Prior to his tenure at Rutgers, Spiniello spent four seasons as an assistant women's swimming coach at Princeton, helping the Tigers to four Top 25 finishes at the NCAA Championships. The Tigers also captured three Ivy League titles while he was an assistant there. The 2009 and 2010 Princeton teams both finished 18th in the NCAA Championships. All-America honors were in frequent supply with Spiniello on the deck as Alicia Aemisegger earned accolades 13 times from 2007-10. During his tenure, Spiniello also directed the Princeton University Summer Swim Camp and served as head coach and director of the Tiger Aquatic Club.
Spiniello began his collegiate coaching career at Arizona State University, first as a graduate assistant coach (2003-04) before serving as an assistant coach for the men's and women's swimming teams from 2004 to 2006. ASU's men and women both had strong seasons in 2005 and 2006 with Spiniello's assistance. The women's team placed 12th at NCAAs in 2005. The men's side placed 20th at NCAAs in 2005 and 14th in 2006.
Spiniello earned a Bachelor of Arts in history from Franklin and Marshall in 2003 before receiving a Master of Science degree in recreation management from Arizona State in 2006.
The Spiniello File
PERSONAL INFORMATION
Birth Date: August 28, 1980
High School: Boston (Mass.) College
College Education: Franklin & Marshall College, B.A. History, 2003; Arizona State University, M.S. Recreation Management, 2006
COLLEGIATE COACHING EXPERIENCE
2015-Present: Assistant Coach, University of North Carolina
2010-15: Head Women’s Swimming & Diving Coach, Rutgers University
2006-2010: Assistant Women's Swimming Coach, Princeton University
2004-2006: Assistant Men's and Women's Swimming Coach, Arizona State University
2003-2004: Graduate Assistant Men's and Women's Swimming Coach, Arizona State University
COLLEGIATE ACCOLADES
2014: American Athletic Conference Head Coach of the Year
POSTSEASON FINISHES AS AN ASSISTANT COACH
2010 (Princeton): 18th at NCAA Championships (Ivy League Champions)
2009 (Princeton): 18th at NCAA Championships (Ivy League Dual Meet Champions)
2008 (Princeton): 24th at NCAA Championships (Ivy League Champions)
2007 (Princeton): 24th at NCAA Championships (Ivy League Champions)
2006 (Arizona State): 14th (Men) at NCAA Championships
2005 (Arizona State): 12th (Women) and 20th (Men) at NCAA Championships
