Janssen Named Head Swimming & Diving Coach At Milwaukee
Aug. 26, 2008
MILWAUKEE -- Dave Griffore has resigned as the head coach of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee swimming & diving teams with assistant coach Erica Janssen taking over the head coaching duties for the 2008-09 season. The announcement was made by UWM Athletic Director Bud Haidet on Tuesday, Aug. 26.
Janssen has spent the past two seasons as the top assistant coach for the Panthers, working closely with Griffore in helping Milwaukee rewrite the record book. School records have been broken 33 times the past two years with the duo leading the women to their best finish at the league championships since 2001 and the men to their best showing since 2000.
"It is great to have a seamless transition in the leadership of our swimming and diving programs for this coming season," Haidet said. "Erica has already had a major impact on the growing success of our teams over the last couple of years and she has a bright future ahead of her. Dave has done a wonderful job positioning our programs for success, but the opportunity he received to coach in the Big Ten was just too good to pass up. Together, Dave and Erica have laid down a solid foundation and we want to keep the momentum in our swimming and diving programs going in the right direction."
"This is an incredible opportunity for me here at UWM," Janssen said. "Dave (Griffore) and I have worked hard the past two years in changing the culture of the swimming & diving program at UWM and improving our finishes at the league championships. For the student-athletes, not that much changes. There will be a smooth transition - just the face of the program will change - philosophy, direction, all of that is going to stay the same. Dave and I worked together on every decision and now that will just fall on me, not both of us."
Griffore leaves the program after two seasons to accept the first assistant position at Penn State.
"Coaching at Milwaukee has been a great experience and I learned so much from our student athletes," Griffore said. "It was an honor to be part of this program for the last two years and I want to thank both our teams for that. I could not be more excited for Erica, and for the teams, as she will continue to move the program forward. She was a huge part of the success the last two years and this transition is a great situation for our student athletes."
The program has made great strides over the past two seasons with Janssen on the staff. Last year, the women finished third at the league championships and the men also placed third for the second-straight season after three-consecutive fifth-place showings. The women set 12 new school records and the men five. Janssen also had a hand in helping Chase Gravengood qualify for the 2008 Olympic Trials.
In 2006-07, she helped lead UWM to numerous achievements as a first-year assistant. In addition to a runner-up finish on the women's side at the Horizon League Championships - where the team recorded its highest-ever point total - she helped the men to their best finish since 2000.
The women broke 11 school or league records, earned 12 Horizon League Swimmer or Diver of the Week awards. Their 6-3 dual record included six-straight victories and marked the team's best winning percentage since going 8-4 during the 1997-98 season.
In addition to placing third at the league championships, the men broke four school records and recorded a 5-4 dual record. It gave the squad a winning dual record for the first time since going 7-4 in the 1998-99 campaign. They also enjoyed their first five-dual winning streak since the 1999-2000 season.
Janssen came to UWM from Ball State, where she spent one season as the graduate assistant coach for the Cardinals while finishing up her master's degree in sports administration. She was at UW-Stevens Point prior to that, where she was a four-year letterwinner for the Pointers from 2000-04 and served as a volunteer assistant for the program for one season after her swimming career was over.
While at UWSP, she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in business administration and coaching. In addition to serving as a volunteer assistant at her college alma mater, Janssen was also a volunteer coach at her high school alma mater, Oshkosh West. Additionally, she spent three years coaching the Stevens Point Area YMCA Swim Team.
Janssen was a five-time All-America selection, four-year NCAA qualifier and an academic all-conference honoree in the pool for the Pointers. A team captain as a junior and senior, she helped guide the program to the WIAC title in 2001. A four-time conference relay champion, she earned all-league honors eight times. During the 2000-01 season, Janssen swam the third leg for the 200 freestyle relay team that broke the school record with a clocking of 1:36.85.
