About

Coach Matt joined us in the fall of 2018 from The Ohio State University where he was a four year varsity athlete, captain, and a graduate assistant coach for one year before moving to Indiana. Prior to Ohio State Matt grew up in Southwest Connecticut where along with swimming he was also a runner and played many sports including football, basketball, soccer, and chess. Matt swam for Brookfield High School where he helped to lead the Bobcats to three State Championships and along the way racking up several state titles and records. On the club side of swimming Matt competed for the Wilton Y Wahoos where he served as team captain for two years helping the Wahoos to win four national titles. Coach Matt has an older brother with two girls and one son. Coach Matt also has a younger sister who is going into her Junior year of college at Ohio State. Coach Matt is also an avid triathlete and has competed througout the country. In July of 2023 Coach Matt married Carolyn Gassmann who is the world language department chair at Lawrence North High School and teaches spanish immersion, in August Carolyn and Matt picked up their puppy Lola from northern indiana. In their free time Carolyn and Matt enjoy traveling, and going to colts games! 

Coaching

Coach Matt has been helping on the pool deck since he was twelve. Growing up his mom was consider to be one of the best developmental coaches in Connecticut and Matt always helped her with her group after his practice concluded. At sixteen Matt began to coach his own group at a country club where he assisted for two years before becoming the head coach for a summer before heading off to Ohio State. While attending Ohio State Matt continued to coach as head coach of Wedgewood Country Club leading the rays to two runner up finishes. After graduating Matt stayed in Ohio to begin his coaching career as a Volunteer Assistant at Ohio State. In this role Matt was mentored by many great coaches including Head Coach Bill Dorenkott and spent majority of his time with the Distance group as the mile is his favorite event to watch and to coach.

Getting to know Matt

• Favorite food: Mom’s homemade lasagna and cast iron cooked ribeyes

• Favorite book: Man’s Search For Meaning –Victor Frankl

• Favorite quote: “To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift”  –Steve Prefontaine

  “Service is the rent you pay for your room on earth” –Muhammad Ali

• If you could meet one person who would it be and why: Julian Edelman wide Receiver for New England Patriots. Julian is 5’ 10” and 198 pounds, what he accomplishes as a Wide Receiver on the football field is astonishing and after hearing him speak several times I love his mentality of grit and hard work.

• Why do you love to coach: I love to watch the sport of swimming teach young kids how to goal set, work hard, and learn that they can accomplish their goals through hard work and discipline. Swimming did it for me- and I love to help others do it for them. 

About

Jazzy was homegrown in Indiana, born and raised in Indianapolis. She is the youngest of three and went through the whole cycle of LST, starting in the Lawrence swim lesson program, graduating onto the club team and competing in high school. She went on to swim at the collegiate level, swimming for Uindy. Jazzy has come full circle by first becoming a swim instructor for the swim lessons program, then being hired as a group assistant and now finishing the cycle as the Head Age Group coach for LST. Jazzy is grateful for the club and sport which has done wonders for her life and is eager to give back to the community that helped shape her into who she is today. Jazzy loves to be working in her field of study of exercise science and sport performance.

Coaching

This is Jazzy’s eighth year of coaching with LST and her fourth year as Head Age Group Coach. Jazzy’s coaching began with LST’s pre-competitive program back in 2016, where she discovered that she had a passion for sharing knowledge and experiences about swimming. Jazzy assistant coached for 3 years before transitioning to the Head Age Group Coach for LST.  In her time so far with LST, she has led the age group program to multiple state qualifiers and tremendous overall team growth.

Getting to know coach Jazzy

• Favorite food: Breakfast! Steak! 
• Favorite book: Anything by Dr. Suess
• Favorite quote: “You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t how hard you hit; it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done. Now if you know what you’re worth, then go out and get what you’re worth” – Rocky Balboa
• Hobbies: Lifting, Cooking, Swimming 
• If you could meet one person, who would it be and why: Michelle Obama, because I would love to hear her story personally.
• Why do you love to coach: “I have a passion for teaching and love to make a positive impact in the lives of those around me, especially in today’s youth. Coaches hold a huge responsibility to teach their athletes good morals, life skills, and of course building them to be the best athletes they can be all while having fun!"

About

Gabe was born in Chicago, IL, and grew up in Indianapolis, IN. He started swimming in 2006 for Warren Twp Middle School Swim Team. Gabe developed a passion for swimming and began his swim club career with Power Aquatics. Then in 2011 Warren Aquatics Club was established and continued to swim  club there. Throughout his high school career, Gabe was All-MIC, Sectional Champion, and got to swim at the State Meet. In 2015 he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps where he served as an infantry man for six years. He was a Sergeant and served as an infantry team leader.

Coaching

Gabe began coaching in 2016 for Warren Aquatics Club when he returned from infantry School in California. He coached novice swimmers and continued his way up to coach high school swimmers this past season at Warren Central as an assistant coach.   

Getting to know Coach Gabe

• Favorite food: Bacon Cheeseburger
• Favorite book:  Any book I read to my son
• Favorite quote: “Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come.” -Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson
• If you could meet any person, who would it be and why? I would like to meet Mark Hamill I grew up watching Star Wars I am still a big fan and I think it would be cool to sit down and chat with Luke Skywalker.
• Why do you love to coach: I love coaching because I like helping swimmers unleash their hidden potential. 

About

Quincy was born and raised right here in Indianapolis, IN and recently moved to McCordsville, IN. He started his career in swimming when he was 6 years old and swam for the Windemere Dolphins in Fishers, IN in 2001. He then picked up swimming again in high school at Lawrence North in 2009 and continued to swim for both the high school and Lawrence Swim Team. While swimming for Lawrence North, he received two most improved awards, set a boys 200 medley relay record and went on to compete at the state championships his senior year. He has also competed in multiple senior state competitions while swimming for Lawrence Swim Team. Quincy currently holds a bachelors of science with a focus in Microbiology from Southern Illinois University- Carbondale.

Coaching

Quincy began coaching here at Lawrence Swim Team in 2014 with the Bedrock group. Since then he has coached the Foundation group, the Cornerstone group and assisted with the Keystone group. Quincy currently is the lead Cornerstone group coach and brings a unique perspective and energy to the deck having been in the shoes of most of the athletes he coaches.

Getting to know Coach Quincy

• Favorite food: Coconut Shrimp
• Favorite book: The Martian
• Favorite quote: “Champions have to have the skill and the will. But the will has to be bigger than the skill.”- Muhammad Ali
• If you could meet one person who would it be and why: I would want to meet Edward Jenner as he is the father of vaccines
• Why do you love to coach: “I love to pass on the passion of swimming that I have to the children with high hopes that they will one day become excellent swimmers.”

About 

Joe was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, but spent most of his childhood and adult life in Indianapolis, Indiana. Joe first discovered his passion for strength and conditioning when he was a sophomore in highschool and joined the brotherhood of Ritter’s Football team. Joe found his athleticism to excel primarily in football and track, competing at the track and field state level on various accounts. Joe continued his football career at Anderson University.

Coaching 

This is Joe’s fourth year in coaching resistance training. Joe has worked with all individuals anywhere from silver sneakers lifting for the first time, to elite football combines, to individuals that simply want to better their overall fitness with strength training. Joe began his strength training journey as a personal trainer at Iron Valley Barbell back in 2019. Joe is now a full time strength coach for D1 working with all ages and running workouts for the Noblesville Fire Department. Joe is ecstatic to stretch his horizons into the swimming realm with his resistance and strength training background. 

Get to know Coach Joe:

Favorite Food: Spicy Chicken Sandwich

Favorite Book: The Art of War by Sun Tzu 

Favorite Quote: “The struggles along the way are only meant to shape you for your purpose.” - Chadwick Boseman 

Hobbies: Lifting, Car Shows, Roller Skating, Golf

If you could meet one person, who would it be and why? Mike Tyson. He is a man that fears nothing, and that's the kind of man I want to be.

Why do you love to coach? I have a passion for helping individuals find their peak abilities in the realm of sports performance. Sometimes all a kid needs is a coach to inspire them to believe in themselves

About

Ian was born and raised in Indianapolis on the Northwest side. Ian was convinced by his friends to join their summer team Westchester Whales at 8 years old and soon joined the Pike swim club afterwards. Ian swam for Pike Swim Club for nine years and attended Senior State for his sophomore and junior year. Ian is currently studying at IUPUI working towards his degree in exercise science going towards a masters degree in biomechanical engineering.

Coaching

In Ian's time at Pike, in high school Ian taught swim lessons for four years. Ian started coaching for Pike at the beginning of 2022 as the lead coach for their developmental group. July 2022 Ian became the lead coach for pike's earliest competitive group and coached them until July of 2023. Ian is very excited to be a part of LST and impact the club with his passions for swimming.

Getting to know Ian:

Favorite food: Pozole (traditional Mexican soup)

Favorite book:  Giannis: The Improbable Rise of an NBA MVP

Favorite quote:  "Be willing to be uncomfortable. Be comfortable being uncomfortable. It may get tough, but it's a small price to pay for living a dream." -Peter McWilliams

If you could meet any person, who would it be and why? LeBron James, he has been able to compete at such a high level I would love to learn his secrets of how he does it.

Why do you love to coach: I love seeing kids who love to work hard and want to get better to achieve their goals; it is such a great feeling knowing I helped them with their swimming journey. 

About

Andrea was born and raised in Chesterton, Indiana. (Northwest Indiana) She moved to Indianapolis to go to college in 2017. Andrea’s younger brother joined the swim team when he was 8 and she was jealous that she couldn’t go to swim practice! Andrea’s mom signed her up for the swim team when she was 10. She swam for Duneland Swim Club and Chesterton High school until she swam for IUPUI from 2017-2021 as a sprint freestyler. Andrea graduated from IUPUI with degrees in Finance and Accounting. She currently works for Ernst & Young as an audit associate.

Coaching

Andrea started teaching swim lessons in middle school and continued until high school where she was a lifeguard and coordinated Chesterton’s Learn to Swim program. Andrea also taught group and private swim lessons while she was attending IUPUI.

Getting to know coach Andrea

Favorite Food: French Fries, Dark Chocolate

Favorite book: The Alchemist

Favorite quote: “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou

Hobbies: Golfing, Hiking, beach, baking, reading

Why do you love to coach: I love teaching and helping those around me where I can. I have had some pretty awesome coaches throughout my swim career and am hoping to give the swimmers a similar experience. Seeing the progress of coaching the same student for a couple years is so rewarding!

About

Jacob was born and raised in Lawrence, having gone through the complete Lawrence swim team experience. His father, Michael, was a former swim coach at Lawrence North High School and former head coach of Lawrence swim team as Jacob progressed through his swimming tenure. Jacob graduated from Wabash College with a degree in Biology, where he swam competitively for all four years. Jacob is more than excited to give back to the club that allowed him to continue his swimming career and grow as a person. Jacob is an avid fisherman and loves hiking/camping.

Coaching

This will be Jacob’s second year working with the club team, after taking time off from the last time he was coaching for LST in 2022. In the meantime, Jacob has coached and instructed swimmers of all ages. Working with beginners to high school swimmers through instructional swim camps at Wabash College.

Getting to know Jacob

• Favorite food: Jack’s Pepperoni Pizza
• Favorite book: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
• Favorite quote: “Competitive sports are played mainly on a five-and-a-half inch court, the space between your ears.” - Bobby Jones
• Hobbies: All Sports, Fishing, Hiking, Camping, Music
• If you could meet one person who would it be and why: Roberto Clemente. Growing up a Pittsburgh fan, I always idolized Roberto Clemente as a baseball player and for his actions as a human being.
• Why do you love to coach: Having gone through the LST experience with a parent as a coach, I want to instill the same spark in our swimmers that led me to be the person I am today.

About

Alex is from Central Indiana and grew up in Lawrence Township. Alex was introduced to the world of competitive swimming as a freshman in High School, with no previous swim experience. Nonetheless, Alex learned to swim and found a love for the sport. Alex ended up swimming for all four years of his High School career and is now attending college to earn his Bachelor’s degree in Design Technology.

Coaching

Alex began as a swim instructor for Lawrence Swim Team and always found ways to help his coaches throughout High School. After graduating, Alex took interest in becoming a coach and gave it a shot and was hired as an assistant coach for Lawrence North varsity and Jr varsity swim team of the year 2022-2023.Ales also extended is assistance with the Fall Creek Valley MS swim team and is currently assigned to assist with LST’s high school Spire group.

Getting to know Coach Alex

• Favorite food: Jambalaya and Dairy Queen

• Favorite author: Chris d’Lacey

• Favorite quote: “No! Try not. Do. Or do not. There is no try” - Master Yoda 

• Hobbies: Driving, playing video games

• If you could meet any one person, who would it be and why: My great grandfather because I’ve always been told that my spirit is much like his, and he was a real cowboy, which would be cool to meet.

• Why do you love to coach: Watching how I can help shape young athletes to become amazing, not just in the water but out of the water as well, is the greatest thing to me.

About: Born and raised in Lawrence Township. I am the middle child of the family, with an older brother and younger sister. Graduated from Lawrence North High School in 2020. I attended the University of Cincinnati as a student-athlete where I was able to further my education and continue my swimming career. After graduating from UC in the spring of 2024, I decided to pursue a masters in biology which I plan to finish in the spring of 2025. I am currently applying for dental school, with the goal of becoming a Doctor of Dental Medicine! 

Coaching: I began coaching as a volunteer for the LN High School team in the Fall of 2023. I am excited to continue my coaching experience by being apart of LST!

 Getting to know me: 

                   -Favorite food: Anything from Chipotle

                    -Favorite book: Open by Andre Agassi

                    -Favorite quote: “The crisis of today is the joke of tomorrow.” -H.G. Wells 

                   -Hobbies: tennis, mountain biking, running, vintage sports card collecting, abstract art

                   -If you could meet one person who would it be and why? Jesus, he seems like an interesting person to learn from. 

                    -Why do you love to coach? I had such an amazing experience as a swimmer for LST and LN, and I want to give back by teaching the next generation of swimmers what I learned. 

About:

Jeron was an international student athlete that came to school at the University of Indianapolis to pursue a career in environmentalism but also to compete alongside their Swim & Dive team. He has competed at the DII NCAA Championship consecutively for his 5 year tenure and managed to win National Championship rings in some events throughout. Internationally he has competed in competitions such as Jr. World Championships, Commonwealth Games, US Open and multiple other Caribbean & Central American Championships. Outside of swimming he plays a few sports for hobby and continues to pursue growth in the field of Safe Water/ Water Treatment.

Coaching:

Growing up, coaching has always been second nature. He would spend his extra time helping teammates on deck with technique work and otherwise would pick up a few lessons whenever he could with the broader community. Professionally, he just concluded his Graduate Assistantship where he was one of the lead sprint/dryland coaches at the University of Indianapolis. His role at that level in culmination with past coaching experience is what pushed him to pursue a fulfilling role with LST!

Favorite food: BBQ Chicken or Braised Beef

Favorite Movie: Polar Express

Favorite Quote: "Those who never try, lose the lessons of failure"

Hobbies: Swimming, Golfing, Doing Mechanics, Photography

If anyone, I would meet Snoop Dogg. He has lived so many different lives but remains relevant by being himself and doing what he loves.

I love coaching because it empowers me to help those who aspire to achieve similar to what I have. Swimming has afforded me so many opportunities that being able to see others capitalize on them brings me deep joy!

About

Riley is from Indianapolis, Indiana, but she is currently studying Global Affairs and Spanish at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. Being raised around the pool, she swam for twelve years throughout elementary to high school, continuing her love for the sport by swimming in college. Most recently, she competed at the Club Nationals Championships hosted by Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio.  She is now a lifeguard at her university.

Coaching

While swimming throughout high school, Riley was also a swim lesson instructor, teaching students ranging from six months to thirteen years old. After getting her lifeguarding certification, she spent part of the summer lifeguarding at Warren Central High School and continued this career into college.

Getting to Know Coach Riley

• Favorite Food: Quesadillas, Dr.Pepper

• Favorite Books: Verity, One of Us Is Lying, The Love Hypothesis

• Favorite Quote: “If you can dance and be free and not be embarrassed, you can rule the world.” - Amy Poehler

• Hobbies: Swimming, Baking, Working Out

• If you could meet one person who would it be and why: Jojo Siwa because I have too many unanswered questions.

• Why do you love to coach: I love teaching and being able to give people the mechanisms to excel in what they love to do.