The University of Houston Athletics Department is proud to announce Ryan Wochomurka (WAH-kuh-MUR-kah) as the school’s seventh Head Swimming & Diving Coach. A native of Columbus, Ind., Wochomurka comes to Houston from the University of Louisville, where he spent the past eight seasons as a member of the coaching staff, most recently serving as Associate Head Coach.
“We are proud to welcome Ryan as our new Head Swimming & Diving Coach and look forward to watching him build a successful program, both in and out of the pool,” said UH Associate Athletics Director for Auxiliary Services and Houston Swimming & Diving Sport Administrator Bruce Gregory. “After conducting a search that included many impressive candidates from across the country, there was no doubt that Ryan is the best candidate to build UH Swimming & Diving into one of the top programs in the nation.”
“My family and I are humbled and excited for the opportunity to be the Head Coach at the University of Houston,” said Wochomurka. “We have all the ingredients in place for a truly elite aquatics program: a great school, beautiful facilities, a driven athletic department, motivated student-athletes, and an amazing city. We can’t wait to get started.”
At Louisville, Wochomurka was promoted to Associate Head Coach for Swimming & Diving and Men’s Recruiting Coordinator prior to the 2014-15 season. During his eight seasons on staff with the Cardinals, Wochomurka helped the program win two men’s championships and three women’s team championships in the BIG EAST Conference, as well as the 2014 American titles on both the men’s and women’s sides.
This past season, Wochomurka led the Louisville men’s team to a second-place finish in their first season as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Cardinals won five events at the conference meet, along with 15 medals.
Under Wochomurka’s leadership, the Cardinals also experienced tremendous success on a national level. The women’s program finished sixth at the 2015 NCAA Championships, a school record, and Kelsi Worrell won national championships in both the 100- and 200-yard butterfly events. The sixth-place finish was the culmination of four years of improvement for the Cardinals, as they placed 24th in 2012, 22nd in 2013 and 15th in 2014.
The Louisville men’s team also grew into a national power under Wochomurka’s watch, placing in the top-25 at the NCAA Championships in each of the past six seasons. The Cardinals finished ninth in 2012 and also notched top-15 finishes in 2014 and 2015. With Wochomurka in his corner, Louisville’s Carlos Almeida was the NCAA championship in the 200-yard breaststroke in 2012, while Joao De Lucca won NCAA titles in the 200-yard freestyle in 2013 and both the 100- and 200-yard freestyle in 2014.
An accomplished swimmer in his own right, Wochomurka was a 21-time All-American during his collegiate career at Auburn University and was part of three NCAA National Championship teams. Individually, Wochomurka won NCAA titles in both the 200- and 400-yard freestyle relays and captured eight Southeastern Conference championships.
In addition to his success at Auburn, Wochomurka represented the United States at the 2003 FINA World Championships, where he was a silver medalist in the 4×100 free relay. He was also a 2004 Olympic Trials finalist and a two-time FINA World Cup Silver Medalist.
Wochomurka and his wife, Leigh, have a son, Hayes (3), and a daughter, Hallie (6 months).
The above article is a press release submitted to Swimming World. To reach our audience, contact us at newsmaster@swimmingworld.com.
Too bad he won’t have a men’s team to coach.
The Ciugs once had a pretty good men’s program but gender equity doomed the team.