Heidi Voigt enters her twelfth season as head coach of the Northern Michigan University swimming and diving program in 2021-22.
In a shortened Covid season of 2020-2021, Voigt led the NMU men to their highest ever NCAA finish with 12th place. Both her men and women finished as GLIAC conference runners-up.
The 2019-20 season finished with Voigt earning her third GLIAC Coach of the Year award after leading the women's program to their first GLIAC Championship since 2002. The team finished with 12 dual meet victories, including two over Division I University of South Dakota, while also winning the Calvin College Invitational. The men's team continued their run of success in the 800-meter Freestyle Relay, winning the GLIAC Championship for the fifth-straight time, winning the race every year since the restart of the men's program. She also helped the team to a total of 16 All-American honors.
In 2018-19, she guided the Wildcat Swim & Dive program to another successful season. The men's team finished the dual season undefeated while winning the Calvin Invite for the first time. Her efforts saw the men's team finish second at the GLIAC Championships. The women's side finished with just one loss in dual meets, losing to Bowling Green State University along with a second place finish at the Calvin Invite and third in the GLIACs. She also helped the Wildcats earn 11 All-American honors and 18 Honorary All-American honors.
The 2017-18 season saw both teams combine for 17 All-Americans and 12 Honorary All-Americans at the NCAA Championships. At the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships, teams tallied a total of 69 All-Conference honors while winning 15 races. Rachel Helm was named the GLIAC's Women's Swimmer of the Year while Grantas Dapkus was selected as the GLIAC's Co-Male Swimmer of the Year. Voigt was named the GLIAC Men's Swimming Coach of the Year for the second time in three seaons.
During the 2016-17 campaign, Voigt's teams were consistently ranked in the national top 10. Six Wildcats and one relay team combined to win 13 gold medals at the GLIAC Championships, helping both teams finish third. Lajos Budai was named GLIAC Swimmer and Freshman of the Year while Rachel Helm earned Freshman of the Year honors, with both winning four individual events. Eight Wildcat swimmers and two divers qualified for the NCAA Championships, with four going on to capture a combined seven All-American awards. Helm became Northern Michigan's first NCAA Champion since 1998, winning the 100-yard backstroke. The Wildcats also received nine GLIAC Athlete of the Week awards and two National Swimmer of the Week nods.
In 2015-16, Voigt helped reinstate the men's team. Both squads finished third at the GLIAC Championships, with 13 women and nine men earning all-GLIAC accolades. Voigt was named the GLIAC Men's Coach of the Year while Molly Kearney was tabbed as the Diver of the Year. Northern Michigan qualified nine athletes for the NCAA Championships, and three went on to earn All-American accolades. Voigt was also voted to the CSCAA Board as the NCAA Division II men's representative.
In 2014-15, Voigt helped guide three swimmers and a diver to the NCAA Championships where Molly Kearney and Debbi Lawrence would earn All-American accolades. Kearney would earn her All-American honors in both the one and three-meter dive, while Lawrence earned All-American status in the 100-freestyle, 100-butterfly, 100-backstroke and 50-freestyle. The Wildcats also finished in the top 20 as a team placing 17th out of 39. NMU placed third at the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championship for the third consecutive season.
In her first season (2010-11), Voigt and the Wildcats finished seventh at the GLIAC Championship. Diver Kelli Vander Baan qualified for Nationals and finished 11th in the three-meter and 13th in the one-meter.
Voigt spent two seasons (2008-10) as an assistant coach at New Mexico State working with the distance freestyle group, arranging team travel and handling administration duties.
During the 2009-10 sea son she helped direct the Aggies to a program-best second place showing at the Western Athletic Conference Championships with 494 points. The distance freestyle crew made an impact for NM State at the meet with five Aggies placing in the top 12 in the 1,650-yard freestyle. In the classroom NM State ranked ninth nationally on the CSCAA Division I Team Scholar All-America Fall 2009 list.
Voigt joined the Aggies after five seasons at Wyoming (2003-08). She spent her first two years at Wyoming as the graduate assistant with the men’s and women’s programs and the last three as the assistant coach. Voigt produced 25 men and 30 women to all-lea gue honors during her time as a graduate assistant.
Prior to her stint at Wyoming she was a high school and age group coach in Seattle and Montana. Voigt was named the age group coach of the year for the state of Montana in 2002.
She graduated from the University of Washington in 1996, with a bachelor’s degree in athletic training, where she was a team captain. While swimming for the Huskies, Voigt was voted the Most Inspirational Swimmer for three consecutive years. Voigt later went on to earn a master’s degree in health and kinesiology from Wyoming in 2005.
