Emily was a swimmer for 12 years before coming on board as a Blue Tides Coach. She is currently our Head  Coach and Swim Development Coordinator at the Park District overseeing all swim lessons. Emily has worked at Inwood since 2018 lifeguarding and teaching lessons. She graduated from the Univeristy of St. Francis with a degree in Criminal Justice. Emily's favorite stroke is butterfly and backstroke. She strongly believes in preparing athletes for success by teaching proper technique and work ethic. 

Nick has been coaching Blue Tides since spring 2018. He is a Math teacher at Joliet West and coaches the Joliet Township High School Girls' and Boys' teams as head coach. Nick has been swimming competitively since he was nine years old, which he continues today as a member of the Blue Tides Masters team. Nick also worked as a lifeguard and swim instructor for ten years at the Downers Grove YMCA before he moved to Joliet. 

Molly Hoover is the Team Administrator for the Blue Tides and is also an assistant coach. She has been swimming and coaching with the Blue Tides Masters Team since 2010. Molly began swimming competitively at the age of 6 and competed through college at the University of Northern Iowa. When she’s not on the pool deck, Molly is busy with her two kids, Myka and Eli, and her husband, Kurt.

Garrett has been swimming for nearly 10 years and is excited to return to the team as an assistant coach. As a swimmer, Garrett specialized in breaststroke and distance free. He grew up swimming with the Blue Tides almost at it's very beginning, and finished his career with Delta Aquatics and Chowan University. Garrett is excited to be apart of the team again and watch it grow! 

Emily started coaching with the Blue Tides in the Summer of 2022.  She has been a swim instructor at the Joliet Park District since 2016 and a camp counselor next door during the summers. She recently graduated from Bradley University and is currently teaching 2nd graders in district 86!

Makenna has been coaching with Blue Tides since 2019, however, she started working at the Joliet Park District as a lifeguard/swim lesson instructor in 2016! She swam at the collegiate level from 2019-2022 at the University of Wisconsin Whitewater where she specilized in the 50 free,100 free, and 100 backstroke. Currently, Makenna is working towards her Master's Degree in Speech Pathology at Lewis University in Romeoville. When shes not at the pool, Makenna likes to read, make t-shirts, and play with her 80lb pitpull Chico. 

Andrew began coaching with Blue Tides in September of 2023. Previous to coaching, Andrew had swam competively for six years and taught swim lessons. He is currently pursing a degree in teaching at the Univeristy of Wisconsin-Whitewater. 

Abby joined our coaching staff in April 2023. She swam on Blue Tides from 2014-2025.  Her favortie events are the 100 butterfly, 200 butterfly, and the 50 freestyle. She currently swims for the Joliet Township High School Swim Team, and mostly works with the Ripple & Whitecap groups. Her goal with coaching is to make younger swimmers as passionate as she is about swimming. 

Ava stepped into the role of Junior Coach in 2025. She has been swimming for 10 years, 7 of those with Blue Tides! Her favorite events to compete in are the 100 back, 200 back and 200 IM. She will continue her passion for swimming at the Eastern Illinois University in 2026. She will be working with the Ripple and Whitecap groups and has hopes to instill a positive environment that encourges growth alongside the love for the sport! 

Vaughn stepped up to fufill the role of Junior Coach with Blue Tides in 2024. Vaughn has been swimming for eight years, seven of those years have been with Blue Tides. His favorite event to swim is the 200 freestyle and looks forward to teaching strong freestyle technique to our younger athletes. He will be working with the Ripple & Whitecap group.