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Dave Griffore, who enters his second season as the men's and women's swimming coach at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, set the bar high in his first year leading the Panthers in the pool. His success peaked at the Horizon League Championships, where his women's team was in title contention until the final event, finishing second - just 12.5 points behind Green Bay, which won its third-straight league title. The finish was the best for the team since 2001 and its 832.5 point total marked the highest in program history, topping the old mark of 811.5 set in 2001. On the men's side, UWM earned a solid third-place finish, trailing only runner-up Cleveland State and champ Wright State The finish was the Panthers' best since 2000, with Milwaukee placing fourth or fifth for the past five years. The women broke eight records - two Horizon League, four school and two freshman records fell at the championships to bring their season total to 11 new records overall. The team claimed 10 league championships, with Griffore guiding Lindsay Caldwell to four league crowns overall and Swimmer of the Meet honors for the third-straight year. He also led his women's team to a league-best 12 Horizon League Swimmer or Diver of the Week honors, coached the Horizon League Newcomer of the Year in Shannon Berndt, as well as having the Swimmer (Caldwell) and Diver of the Meet (Crystal Szymanski) for the third-straight season. After starting the season 0-2 in duals against Big Ten competition, Griffore led the UWM women to six-straight dual victories, the longest such streak since the 1990-91 campaign. Their 6-3 dual record marked the team's best winning percentage since going 8-4 during the 1997-98 season. Going from fifth to third in just one season was a complete team effort for Griffore and the UWM men. To compare, the Panthers had 23 swimmers and divers in the finals of the championship events this year. They had only 16 in 2005-06, for an increase of almost a half. Over the course of the season, four new school records were established.
He led the UWM men to a 5-4 dual record, giving the squad a winning dual record for the first time since going 7-4 in the 1998-99 campaign, while also enjoying their first five-dual winning streak since the 1999-2000 season. Griffore came to the Panthers from Eastern Michigan, where he spent six years in roles of graduate assistant, associate coach and assistant coach for the Eagles. "I am pleased to have Dave Griffore as the swimming and diving head coach at UWM," Athletic Director Bud Haidet said. "His background and experience made him an excellent fit for the program. He came from a university with a winning tradition in the sport and has proven to be an excellent recruiter. He also has ties to the state of Wisconsin that serve him well at UWM." Griffore experienced a very successful run while at Eastern Michigan, coaching 85 Mid-American Conference champions on both the men's and women's side. EMU won the first-ever MAC women's title in school history in 2005-06, while also claiming five-consecutive men's conference titles (2001 through 2005) during his tenure. He has ties to Wisconsin and the area, having served as the head coach of the Oshkosh YMCA prior to his stint at Eastern. While at the YMCA, he coached four individual state champions and 17 national qualifiers and won back-to-back championships. Other coaching stops include a year as the head coach of the Gold Vault Swim Club in Kentucky and one season as an assistant coach at the University of New Mexico. He has high school coaching experience as well, serving at Menual High School in New Mexico and Fort Knox High School in Kentucky. The Minnesota native graduated from the University of New Mexico in 1996 with a degree in criminology, while adding a master's degree from Eastern Michigan University in human resources and organizational development. He was a seven-time Western Athletic Conference champion while in the pool for the Lobos, claiming an individual title in the 50 freestyle. He was a four-year letterwinner who served as a team captain for two years and also received the Lobo Award as a senior, recognizing the best overall teammate as voted on by the coaches and squad. |
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