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 | Hometown:
Franklin, Pa.
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| Last College:
Tennessee, 1997
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| Position:
Head Swimming Coach
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| Experience:
6th year at UM
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Given the responsibility of leading the University of Miami swimming program back to national prominence, Christie Shefchunas is now in her sixth year as head coach at UM, and has established the Hurricanes swimming program as a contender amongst the nation's elite once again. She has not only brought in All-America talent, but she has directed several Hurricanes in school-record breaking performances in just three full years at the helm in Coral Gables.
Hired on May 19, 2006 by then Athletic Director Paul Dee, Shefchunas' responsibilities simply included simply redefining the Hurricanes swimming program alongside a diving program that is annually considered one of the nation's best. Now, after three seasons, Shefchunas has done that, and much more.
The recruiting class for the 2009-10 season is seen as one of the best in school history, and certainly the best since Shefchunas has been at UM. Her high level of recruiting certainly paid off as she brought in a host of All-America performers from high school, as well as three transfers that will eligible to compete for the Hurricanes on the year.
"This year [2009-10] is unlike any year since I've been here," expressed Shefchunas. "These are all women that I've recruited, and they all have excellent attitudes and a passion to be great and to make this team great. I feel like we've taken baby steps forward to improve this program in the last three years, and this is the first year that we have everything in place to take a leap forward."
In 2008-09, Shefchunas did something that no other UM women's swimming coach had been able to accomplish since 1995-96--register 10 or more wins in a season. She registered a 10-7 record last year, helping the Hurricanes to an eighth place finish at the ACC Championships in College Park, Md.
At the meet, Miami student-athletes recorded 19 of the season's Top 10 times for the year. The Hurricanes also saw seven school-record times fall in the ACC meet, collecting the most school record breaking performances in one meet in more than a decade. On the season, UM posted a sweep of FIU in two meets, as well as defeating ACC foe Georgia Tech, New Orleans and Georgia Southern in a five-way meet hosted by Georgia Tech in Atlanta.
UM also saw three swimmers collect NCAA "B" cut times, including two of Shefchunas' recruits in Annika Saarnak and Dana Hatic.
During the summer of 2009, Shefchunas saw her first FINA World Championships participant [Saarnak] in Rome. Saarnak competed for her home country of Estonia, and the rising junior performed well in her first-ever international event.
"I'm so happy with the progress we've made over the last three years, but there is still so much more we are working on accomplishing," admitted Shefchunas. "We have a long way to go in order to reach our goals that we have set for this program...winning ACC's and being in the top 10 at NCAA's."
In her first season (2006-07), Shefchunas earned wins over Western Kentucky, Tampa and local opponent Florida International twice while the Hurricanes finished with just a 4-5 overall record. She would lead the squad to a seventh place finish at the 2007 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Championships in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, followed by a19th place finish at the NCAA Championships in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Those numbers drastically changed in 2007-08 as the level of student-athlete increased, as well as the talent Shefchunas put so much effort into recruiting during the off-season. The Hurricanes finished 8-3 in dual meets, but the finish at the ACC Championships was far from what Shefchunas expected.
Shefchunas came to UM as a well-respected coach. She arrived from Southern Methodist University where she served as an assistant coach for the Mustangs and lead recruiter.
During her tenure at SMU, Shefchunas the Mustangs swimming program finished in the top eight at the NCAA Championships on three occasions from 2003-05, as well as earning WAC Conference (2004-05) and Conference USA (2006) Championships. While there, she assisted in the coaching and development of 22 All-America performers, 33 conference champions and 26 NCAA qualifiers.
In her role as lead recruiter for SMU, Shefchunas was instrumental in bringing in 11 student-athletes that earned All-America honors while 20 went on to win conference titles.
Prior to her stint at SMU, she was an assistant coach at Michigan State University in East Lansing. She served in that capacity from 2000-02 where she was in charge of the men's and women's sprint teams. Shefchunas also served as the Capital Area assistant coach in the summer of 2001 and '02. Prior to MSU, she directed the Chartiers Valley Swim Club in Bridgeville, Pennsylvania for nearly two years after serving for a short time as assistant swim coach at the club.
Christie Shefchunas is a 1997 graduate of the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. While swimming for the Lady Vols program, Shefchunas was tabbed as a four-time All-American while also serving as a team captain during both her junior and senior seasons. Shefchunas and her teammates still hold numerous Top 10 relay times (200 free, 400 free) for the Lady Vols.
"I said it when I got here, and I will keep saying it until it happens. I'm excited to be at the `U', and I know we'll continue to improve in our efforts to be the best program in the ACC and the nation," remarked Shefchunas. "We have a great facility, great administration and great weather that rival any program in the country. That makes the University of Miami a premier place for student-athletes to want to come. The Hurricane spirit surrounds this program, and I am so excited about the future here."
