Tide Swimming

Tide Swimming

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Coaching Staff

51523386754_636f5dd982_w.jpgHEAD COACH RICHARD HUNTER

Lead Coach National
Princess Anne

Coach Richard joined Tide in August 2016 as Associate Head Coach and was promoted to Head Coach in August 2019. Born in Iowa, he grew up in southern California and swam for the Mission Viejo Nadadores. Richard went on to the University of California at Berkeley and swam for the men’s team from 2004 – 2008. After graduation, Richard joined the staff at Mission Viejo and coached in various capacities from novice to all levels and ages between 8 and 18. Richard primarily served as the 13/14 Division Director,  National Team Assistant Coach, and Dryland Programming Director. In 2009, Richard spent a month in Japan running and facilitating a sports camp for Japanese children ages 4-16. Most recently, Richard was honored with the Virginia Swimming Senior Coach of the Year Award in both 2019 and 2020.

“I coach because I am passionate about helping young people discover their own path and goals in life. I feel blessed to be able to help them find enjoyment in the process, not just the end result. “

Click Coach Richard's picture to view a video in which he discusses athlete development at TIDE.

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ASSOCIATE HEAD COACH MIKE SALPETER

Lead Coach Age Group Gold, Senior Gold, Pre-National
Great Bridge

Associate Head Coach Mike Salpeter joined TIDE in August 2018. Mike oversees all of our Chesapeake and Portsmouth programming and is Lead Site Coach for the Great Bridge/Hickory YMCA. Mike earned a BS in Psychology and an MS in Elementary Education, both from Mary Washington College. He is a Level 4 ASCA Certified coach and has completed the education component of Level 5. Mike has over 20 years of coaching experience with 12 years as a Head Coach and four in his current position with TIDE. Mike has served on the Virginia Swimming Board as a coach representative for the past five years. Mike was Head Coach of the Virginia Swimming Long Course Zones All Star Team in 2021 and led the team to the Eastern Zone Championship.

 

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HEAD AGE GROUP COACH CATHERINE LEACH

Lead Coach Developmental Gold, Age Group Bronze (elementary)
Mt Trashmore

Coach Cat joined Tide Swimming in 2013 so she has a decade of experience with the team! She was born and raised in Virginia Beach and is a graduate of Old Dominion University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science & Physical Education. Cat has been involved in the local swimming community as both a swimmer and a  coach for over 20 years and hopes to continue sharing her passion for the sport for many years to come. Cat has held several roles throughout her tenure with TIDE including Swim School Director, Head Developmental Coach and is now in her third year serving as the Head Age Group Coach. She is also actively involved in Virginia Swimming Governance by serving on various committees from year to year. Coach Cat is dedicated to establishing TIDE as a top tier USA Swimming Age Group program and works tirelessly with coaches, athletes, and parents to uphold our team values and create an empowering culture that provides meaningful experiences through TEAM.

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SITO ARROYO

Lead Coach Age Group Bronze (MS)
Mt Trashmore

Lead Masters Coach
Princess Anne

Coach Sito joined Tide in 2022 as one of our Swim School Instructors and transitioned to the full time staff of Tide Swim Team in August 2023. He is from Palmyra, Virginia and moved to Virginia Beach in the fall of 2020. Throughout his career he has served as Assistant Coach for Virginia Wesleyan University, Assistant Coach for Monticello High School, Assistant Coach for Charlottesville Virginia Gators, as well as Head Coach of his summer league team, Lake Monticello Swim Team. Sito earned a Communication Studies degree from Randolph Macon College where he swam competitively all four years. "I am excited to continue my coaching career with Tide while sharing my passion for swimming and working with kids to focus on perfecting technique and having fun."

 

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LEXI BRADSHAW

Assistant Coach
Hilltop

Coach Lexi joined TIDE in the Fall of 2022 as an assistant coach for Novice and Developmental Silver at our Hilltop location. Lexi was born and raised in Virginia Beach; she started swimming competitively at age six on the VBTCC summer league team. Since then she swam for Bayside Marlin Rec league, Broad Bay summer league, and another year round club team, before joining TIDE in 2015 and swimming for Cox High School in the fall of 2020. Lexi swam on TIDE for eight years until she sustained an injury that required her to retire from the program. She specialized in 100 fly as well as short to mid distance freestyle . Throughout her high school career she continued to excel in these events and to go on to numerous state championship meets. Lexi decided to come back to TIDE because she felt that her time with the team wasn't done and that being a coach would be a way to be able to give back to the team and teach other young swimmers what she has learned throughout the program.

 

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DANIEL COLVIN

Lead Coach Age Group Gold 14U
Team Lead 13/14 Coach
Princess Anne

TIDE was pleased to add Coach Danny to the full time staff in the summer of 2020. Danny's previous position was as Co-Head Coach for Westside Aquatics. During his time at Westside, he lead the age group swimmers to a gold medal team finish (small team division) at the 2019 spring Age Group Championships as well as a 3rd place team finish (small team division) at Sectionals. Danny's athletes also set a few Southern California records. Before Westside, Danny was the Director of Strength and Conditioning with the Mission Viejo Nadadores. His primary focus at Mission was coaching their 13-14 year olds, but he also branched out to other age groups. Danny also developed the strength and conditioning programing which complemented the water training for 12 Rio Olympic Trial Qualifiers and Ous Mellouli (2012 Gold medalist, 1500 Free, and former world record holder). Before Mission Viejo, Danny started his coaching career with Buenaventura Swim Club as the Bronze Group Coach and quickly moved up to Senior Sprint Coach and Head Strength and Conditioning Coach. Danny also spent nearly three years as the Strength and Conditioning coach for the men's and women's water polo and swim teams at Ventura College. Danny earned an Associate of Science degree in Kinesiology and Exercise Science from Moorpark College.

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MORGAN DENNING

Lead Coach Novice, Developmental Silver
Team Lead Developmental Coach
Hilltop

Coach Morgan joined TIDE in 2020, starting with Tide Swim School and assisting in Developmental. Morgan has been coaching since 2016 and has worked with ages 4-18 through summer swim leagues in Japan and in Chesapeake. Morgan began swimming competitively when she was 5 years old and has swum in Florida, Virginia, California, and Japan. Lastly, she swam at Campbell University from 2018-2022 and graduated in May 2022, earning a Bachelor of Science in Sport Coaching with a minor in Business Administration. While at Campbell, Coach Morgan specialized in distance freestyle events. Morgan enjoyed her college swimming career and had 4 successful years promoting teamwork both on deck and in the pool. Coach Morgan is entering her third year with TIDE and looks forward to helping the swimmers that she will interact with improve in the sport and reach their goals. She also encourages the swimmers to reach their full potential by providing a safe environment for swimmers to grow and learn lifelong skills!

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CALLIE DUNHAM

Lead Coach Senior Bronze
Great Bridge

Coach Callie joined TIDE in the fall of 2022. Callie was born and raised in Virginia Beach. She started swimming at the age of 4 with Carolanne Farms Swim Team and then swam with a local club team until 2012 when her family moved to San Diego, where she swam for Coronado Navy Swim Association. Upon moving back to Virginia Beach in 2014 she joined TIDE and is a proud TIDE Alumni class of 2017. Callie attended the University of Mary Washington and swam all 4 years for the varsity team. She specialized in the 500 freestyle, 400 IM, and 200 breaststroke. She graduated Cum Laude in 2021 with a Bachelor's of Science in Communications and Digital Studies with a double minor in Business Administration and Sports Management. Callie continued her education at ODU, working on her masters in Sports Management. Four years of college swimming just wasn't enough so she took her Covid year of eligibility and swam a 5th year during the 2021-22 season while at ODU. Callie is so grateful for this opportunity to coach for the team that gave her the best opportunities to swim in college and help set the foundation for not only her swim career but for life. "I'm super excited to give back to the team that gave me so much."

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NATHAN KIMBEL

Lead Coach Developmental Silver, Developmental Gold
Greenbrier

Coach Nathan joined the TIDE staff at our Portsmouth location in September 2021, after four years spent coaching with two different year round club teams in our area. In 2022, Coach Nathan moved into a full time position, with coaching responsibilities at two different sites. Nathan started swimming at the age of 9 at his local YMCA before joining the Coast Guard Blue Dolphins at age 11. He swam all through high school, winning two state championships with Grafton High School. Nathan spent two years swimming at Wingate University in North Carolina before transferring to ODU, where he graduated in 2020.

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ALLISON MICKUNAS

Assistant Coach Age Group Bronze (MS)
Mt Trashmore

Coach Allison joined TIDE in January 2017 as a Swim School instructor. She is now a member of the Hilltop staff, coaching TIDE's developmental practice groups. She is a Virginia Beach local who has been swimming competitively since age 5: swimming at TIDE, Cox HS, and Club Brittany. Allison earned a Bachelor's of Science in International Affairs from Florida State University and a Master of Arts in Chinese from Valparaiso. She spent a year teaching English in Shanghai, China, before completing a teaching license with an endorsement in English as a Second Language at Old Dominion University. She now teaches ESL and coaches swimming at Norview High School. She has been coaching and teaching lessons since high school. Allison was a co-head coach of the Salem HS Swim and Dive Team for four years and is the head coach of Club Brittany's summer league team. Allison loves working with TIDE's swimmers and sharing her love of the sport of swimming while helping athletes develop into great global citizens.

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DEANNA PARSONS

Assistant Coach

Coach Deanna joined the TIDE staff in the spring of 2022 as an assistant coach in our developmental program at the Hilltop YMCA. Born and raised outside of Baltimore, Maryland, Deanna began swimming at the age of 5, spending the majority of her training and development with North Baltimore Aquatic Club (NBAC), where she found her passion and talent in the 200 Individual Medley and 100 butterfly. Deanna also swam for Archbishop Spalding High School in Severn, Maryland where she earned the title of 2-time National Catholic champion in the 100 yard butterfly. Post age group swimming, Deanna earned a scholarship to swim and attend the University of Connecticut, earning a Bachelor of Arts in Communication finding a passion for project management in the healthcare industry. Deanna began coaching for North Saint John's Swim Club in the summer of 2013 through 2017 where she found her strength working with the 10 and under age groups, leading them into undefeated divisional champions for multiple seasons. Deanna is excited to continue her passion for swimming and working with kids to focus on perfecting technique and having FUN.

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RICKY PEREZ

Lead Coach Senior Gold, Age Group Gold 12U
Princess Anne

Coach Ricky joined the TIDE staff in September of 2019. Born and raised in Wisconsin, Ricky began his coaching career with numerous assistant coaching positions around the state and then continued coaching throughout college. He competed for and graduated from Eastern Michigan University with a degree in Sports Performance and Fitness Entrepreneurship. During his time there he continued to coach club swimming, volunteered with the Eastern Michigan Women's swim team, and volunteer coached with their strength and conditioning program. Since then he has gone on to interning with UW Health at The American Center focusing on strength and conditioning and athlete development.

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MAGGIE POPE

Lead Coach Novice
Greenbrier

Lead Coach Senior Silver
Great Bridge

Coach Maggie joined Tide Swimming in January 2021 as both a Swim School Instructor and an assistant coach at our Hilltop location. She began swimming when she was four years old and swam for the Seven Hills Barracudas summer swim team in her hometown of Nashville. Maggie started coaching for her summer swim team when she was fourteen. Her home club team was Excel Aquatics, where she competed both regionally and nationally, and earned the spot of team captain. Coach Maggie went on to swim for the University of Richmond, where she helped the team to four conference championships in her four years as a Spider. She also took multiple top three relay finishes and individual finishes in the 100 and 200 backstroke. After graduating, Coach Maggie was head coach of a summer league team back home where she coached the team to a divisional championship win for the first time in years. Coach Maggie is elated to be back in the swimming community after a few years off and happy to contribute to a sport and life skill as important as swimming. We are excited to help Maggie continue on her coaching journey in her transition from Swim School Site Supervisor at Norfolk Academy to Tide Swim Team coach at our Greenbrier and Great Bridge locations.

51522679131_45017bc046_w.jpg JASON RODRIGUEZ

Tide Masters Coach (Open Water)

Coach Jason joined TIDE swimming in January 2017. Beautiful Virginia Beach has been his home since graduating from Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In addition to coaching ICS and Tide Masters, Jason is also an active US Masters competitive swimmer for TIDE, where he primarily specializes in middle and long distance freestyle events, as well as long distance open-water races. When not swimming, he loves to surf and spend time out on the water.

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MARILYN ROWELL

Lead Coach Pre-National, Age Group Silver 14U
Team 15-18 Lead Coach
Princess Anne

Coach Marilyn joined TIDE in January 2022. She began swimming competitively in Jacksonville, Florida where she swam for the Episcopal Amberjax under Benji DeMotte who possesses eight Coach of the Year titles, with one being Virginia's 2017-2018 Age Group Coach of the Year. Marilyn qualified and placed at many high level meets and went on to swim at the collegiate level. Her undergraduate degree is in environmental science; she graduated in 2022 with a master's degree in fisheries and aquatic sciences from the University of Florida. Coach Marilyn moved to Virginia Beach in October 2018 and coached three years as the Salem High School Varsity Head Coach. She also has experience with two local club and VBSL teams. Amongst other certifications, Marilyn is a level 4 ASCA member and she has experience with private lessons, summer swim camps, underprivileged youth programs, and as a coach for the Special Olympics in Alabama. She was selected to coach the Virginia IMX Select Camp in 2022 with the Virginia Tech Assistant Coach and worked alongside Coach Mike Salpeter at the Virginia Swimming Eastern Zone LC Age Group Championships in 2021. Marilyn focuses on building relationships and learning about the holistic child to help her swimmers reach their highest potential. She currently lives in Virginia Beach with her husband Alex and their two dogs, Togo and Luna.

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EMILY SALPETER

Lead Coach Age Group Bronze, Age Group Silver
Great Bridge

Tide Swim School Summer Site Supervisor
Great Bridge Swim & Racquet Club

Coach Emily joined TIDE in August 2018 as an assistant coach at our (then) newest location, the Taylor Bend YMCA. Emily has been involved with swimming her entire life. She grew up in Portsmouth and swam for a local club team and her high school team. Emily went on to attend Mary Washington University and swam all four years, from 1999-2003. Emily graduated in 2003 with a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration and continued her education into graduate school, earning a Master's in Education, specializing in Instructional Technology, in 2004. Emily teaches fifth grade for Chesapeake Public Schools at Chittum Elementary. She has coached swimmers from beginners to state qualifiers. She has coached Prenovice, Novice, Developmental Silver, Developmental Gold, Age Group Bronze, and Age Group Silver. During the summers, Emily uses her experience in swim instruction by directing operations and instruction for Tide Swim School at Great Bridge Swim & Racquet Club.

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LIZ SEIGLER

Assistant Coach

Coach Liz joined TIDE in September 2019 after moving to Virginia Beach from the Northern Neck. She is a graduate of VCU with a degree in Health and Physical Education and a teaching certificate for grades K to 12. For the past 20 years, Liz coached and taught swim lessons for the Greater Richmond YMCAs as well as for a USA Swimming club team and a summer swim league on the Peninsula. Liz has a love and respect for the water. She says, "I find it super important for children to learn the basics of swimming and I love seeing their skills progress beyond that." Liz currently works for her husband at SEiGLER Reels and is mom to Cosmo, an English Bulldog.

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RICK SHELTON

Lead Age Group & Senior Coach
Portsmouth

Coach Rick joined TIDE in August 2018, taking the helm at the first of two new sites in the Western Branch area of Chesapeake, the Taylor Bend YMCA. In 2019, he was named site lead at TIDE's second Western Branch/Portsmouth location as some of the Taylor Bend programming was relocated to the Portsmouth YMCA. Rick is from Southern California where he swam competitively for over 10 years. He is a retired Naval Officer and a retired Middle School Teacher. He has committed his life to serving others. Rick has coached nearly every level of swimmer for TIDE, including all four developmental groups, Age Group Bronze and Silver, Senior Silver and Senior Gold. Rick has a level 3 American Swimming Coaches Association certification.

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SCOTT SCOFIELD

Lead Coach Senior Silver, Age Group Silver 12U
Princess Anne

Coach Scott joined the full time staff at Princess Anne in August 2018 as lead coach for Senior Gold and assistant coach for Age Group Bronze, Silver, and Gold. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, Scott swam competitively for Cypress Fairbanks Swim Club (Fleet Swimming). He walked on to the swim team at Southern Illinois University and then later graduated from Sam Houston State University with a degree in Kinesiology. After graduation, Scott joined Cypress Fairbanks Swim Club as an age group coach and assistant to the National team. Scott then went on to become the head coach of South Shore Sails swim team in League City, Texas and Villasport Swim Team in Cypress, Texas. In 2019, Scott lead Alexa Ozment to new team records in the girls 13-14 50 and 100 yard backstroke. During the short course 2022-23 season, Scott coached Nelson Marchione and Chelsea Li to new team records in the 8 & Under 25 yard backstroke and 10 & Under 200 meter breaststroke respectively. Scott also led Liza Cutchins to be named 11-year-old girls Virginia Swimmer of the year. Scott’s favorite part about coaching swimming is seeing athletes set a goal and working daily to achieve that goal. Scott has a 3-year old son named Thomas. 

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KATE SULLIVAN

Assistant Coach
Great Bridge

Coach Kate joined Tide Swimming in September of 2022 as a Senior Bronze and Senior Silver coach at the Great Bridge location. She was born and raised in Southern California where she graduated university with a B.A. in communications/journalism, worked for years as a swim instructor, and subsequently spent roughly eight years as an assistant age group coach with a club team in Ventura County. Kate's full time job in animal welfare brought her to Norfolk in 2022, and - upon moving to Hampton Roads - she excitedly inquired about joining the TIDE staff, too. She's keen to bring her experience and enthusiasm to the TIDE table.

 

 

Picture of Jack Roach JACK ROACH

Consultant
Coach and Athlete Development

(Click on Jack's picture for video)

Jack Roach joined TIDE full time in January 2017 as Head Coach and Senior Program coach. In August 2019 he was named Director of Coach and Athlete Development for TIDE. Jack has over 35 years of coaching experience and is perhaps one of the most accomplished and experienced coaches in USA Swimming. Throughout his long coaching career, Jack has gained experience at every level of swimming – club, age group and senior, college, the USA National and USA National Junior Teams, and the USA Olympic team in 2008, 2012, and 2016.

Jack Roach, a former beach lifeguard and Marine, served as Head Age Group and Junior National coach at Mission Bay Aquatics from 1986-1990 alongside legendary coach Mark Schubert. Together they won nine national team titles from 1986-1989. Jack served as an Assistant coach at the University of Texas women's swimming team from 1990-2000. The UT women won two national championships and were runner up once during his tenure as Assistant coach. Simultaneously, he served as Head Coach and Director of the USA Swimming Club Texas Aquatics in Austin, Texas. Jack coached from 2003-2008 in Mexico as Head Coach and Aquatics Director at La Loma Centro Deportivo. He coached the Mexico National Team and also hosted top international coaches and swimmers for training camps at La Loma. In 2008 Jack was named the National Junior Team Program Director at USA Swimming. Talk with any of the top US coaches and they will point to the creation, administration and execution of this National Junior Team concept as a key to the United State's success in London and Rio.

In preparation for the 2016 Rio Olympics, Jack moved into a role working exclusively to help prepare the coaches and athletes as the Consultant of Athlete and Coach Relations. As SwimVortex.com wrote:

"In the ranks of the quiet contributors to surround-success in swimming, there's a man called Jack Roach, who has led a USA juniors tour and training program for several years – and now has a role doing what he's so good at doing: talking to talent and mentors one-on-one, telling it like it is, honesty harnessed not as a challenge but as a strength."

Team USA's performance in Rio speaks for itself and the role every coach and athlete played, including Jack Roach. Ask any Olympian and they will attest to the key role Jack plays in developing elite swimmers.

 
 

Interested in Teaching or Coaching at TIDE Swimming?

Send us a note with information about yourself, education/job/swim history, and why you'd be interested in joining our team.