Steve Ludwig - Head Coach   [email protected]

Steve is a lifelong swimmer and coach whose journey began with Manheim Summer Swim Team and progressed through Lancaster Aquatic Club, where he qualified for Junior Nationals, and Shippensburg University, earning 12 All-American honors. With over 30 years of coaching experience, including leading Radnor High School to a 2nd place finish at the PIAA State Meet. Steve has built successful programs across clubs, high school, and summer leagues. He was the coach-owner of the New Holland Aquatic Club and head coach of the New Holland Dolphins for 13 years. Steve spent five years coaching at Five Star, further expanding his impact on the swimming community. Steve has been teaching for 28 years and teaches 6th-grade science at Radnor Middle School. Steve lives in Ephrata with his wife Jenn, who teaches Phys. Ed in Lancaster City,  and has 3 children who all swim. Connor swims at Shippensburg University, Ethan swims at Salisbury University, and Allie swims for Reading Y.  His philosophy centers on teaching stroke mechanics consistently from the swimmer's first splash to last splash, fostering team culture, and inspiring consistent effort, believing that hard work lays the foundation for lasting success.

Scott Pusey - Assistant Coach

Coach Scott has been coaching for 10 years and is the proud father of two daughters: Adelaide, who swam at Five Star and Warwick, and now attends the University of Pittsburgh and Paige, who is on the Warwick cross country team. Scott's wife, Kati, was a college athlete and now works as a school psychologist at Kissel Hill Elementary. Coach Scott joined the Lititz Springs Swim Team when he was 9 years old because the swim team got to sleep over at the pool. Scott was part of the first team to swim for Coach Mark when FSSC moved to the Lititz Rec. Scott was an accomplished swimmer and set some records in the mid-90s that he says are now long gone! Scott finished his swimming career as a member of the distance freestyle group at Rutgers University and later coached there as a graduate assistant. Scott's advice to Five Star Swimmers, "Work works and small things add up to big accomplishments in and out of the pool." 

Lauren Caramenico - Assistant Coach

Coach Lauren has been coaching for 10 years and has been swimming since the age of 6! She is married to Stephen and is the proud mother of three children; Morgan, Isabelle, and Matthew, who are also all swimmers! Coach Lauren's favorite stroke is breaststroke. She says her favorite thing about coaching is seeing the swimmers succeed in their goals and watching them grow. Coach Lauren loves to have fun and laugh with her swimmers and says swimming is a competitive yet fun sport! Her advice to all swimmers is, "always remember to have fun! Races come and go, but your memories from the swim will last forever!"
 

Sarah Griffith - Assistant Coach

Coach Sarah joined the Five Star Coaching team in the spring of 2024. She is also a coach at Manheim Summer Swim Team. Coach Sarah started swimming at age 6 for Five Star and Manheim Summer Swim teams. She swam on Manheim Central’s high school team. She went to Shippensburg University and did a graduate program at Millersville for social work. It’s been fun for her to coach for the same teams where she learned to swim. Coach Sarah lives in Manheim with her husband Josh, and kids, Cael, Ellis, and Alina. Coach Sarah’s favorite stroke is butterfly. Her advice to swimmers is: A positive mindset will help you reach your goals, and remember nothing worthwhile is easy. 

Gage Mandrell - Assistant Coach

Coach Gage has been swimming since he was 5 years old. After moving from Illinois, he swam for Five Star Swim Club and Manheim Township High School. He attended Washington College, where he graduated with a degree in Neuroscience and swam all 4 years. Following graduation, he’s been working at Penn State Hershey Medical Center as a neurophysiologist and is working on admission to medical school. Coach Gage has spent time coaching McCaskey High School, Lancaster Country Club, and Manheim Summer Swim Teams. He looks forward to getting back on the pool deck and helping swimmers improve on stroke fundamentals and racing. His advice to swimmers is: “Pay attention to the little details, they add up and can make a massive difference in the long run.” 

Chance Foster - Assistant Coach

Coach Chance has been coaching for 4 years, and swam for 6 years. He's a Lock Haven University graduate of the class of 2024 and majored in Health and Physical Education Coaching. He’s coached in the LSSL at East Cocalico and New Holland summer swim teams. His swimming experience ranges from USA Swimming at Nittany Lion Aquatic Club, YMCA national level swimming at Bellefonte YMCA, and Bellefonte Area High School, achieving all-state Status his junior and senior year. Chance began his swim career at the age of 14 in high school, training at the Penn State natatorium under world-class coaching, under Ryan Sprang and Aaron Workman. He is also a Navy veteran and attended Navy SEAL training as well as Navy Diver training. Chance’s approach to swimming is that it’s a life-saving skill and strives to train every athlete to be confident and competent when they step up to the blocks. Chance’s favorite stroke is breaststroke and mid-distance freestyle. His advice to swimmers is: goals only sound crazy until they happen, set your goals high, commit to the process, and cherish who you become through your journey in the pool! 

Morgan Caramenico - Assistant Coach

Morgan began swimming when she was 6 years old. She swam for the East Cocalico Dolphins until she was 14, then finished off her summer swimming career for the New Holland Dolphins. Morgan began her club swimming career with the Reading YMCA as an 8-and-under, then swam for the Ephrata Rec Center for a few years, and then finished her club swimming career at the New Holland Aquatic Club. She attended Lancaster Catholic High School and swam all 4 years there, and ended her swimming career at the University of Pittsburgh on the Panther Swim Club. At Pitt, Morgan double majored in History and Political Science and minored in American Literature. After graduating with her Bachelor's, she attended Widener University Delaware Law School and graduated with her Juris Doctorate in May of 2024. While working towards passing the PA Bar Exam, Morgan works as a law clerk to the Honorable Dennis Reinaker in the Lancaster County Courthouse. From 2018-2021, she was an assistant coach for the New Holland Dolphins. Morgan is excited to join the swimming world again with her first year coaching at Five Star! Her favorite part of coaching is getting to watch the kids improve and see their faces when they've dropped time, whether that be .5 seconds or 15 seconds! My advice to swimmers is: The road to success is tough and sometimes will feel impossible. Don't give up and push through the doubt- your best races are yet to come!