Coaches and Directors

Coaches and Directors
Coaching Staff
Cole Dutton Head Coach - Senior Elite

Coach Cole started coaching in 2011 and started at CAT in 2013. 

Over the years, he has coached every group from AG1-Masters. Currently, Cole is the head coach at CAT coaches Senior Elite but can often be found dropping in on practices at Sportsplex and Hollow Rock.

A native of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Cole grew up swimming competitively. He attended Wingate University where he was an accomplished distance swimmer. Cole's favorite event is the mile.
Garrett Despres Head Age Group Coach - AG3/Seniors

Garrett joined Carolina Aquatic Team in the summer of 2024 and works primarily with our Senior Group, while also assisting in Age Group 3. 

A native of Winterville, North Carolina, Garrett swam for East Carolina Aquatics growing up before attending Gardner-Webb University for four years, where he swam the 200, 500, 1000, and 1650 freestyle. He helped the swim team claim its first conference championship ever in 2020 and set the school record in the 1000 yard freestyle his senior year. 

During his time in the pool, Garrett fell in love with what he calls “the process” of swimming; practicing, working hard, and figuring out ways to become a better swimmer. As a coach, he hopes to help other swimmers fall in love with “the process” as well, showing swimmers that having fun and working hard don’t have to be mutually exclusive.

Outside of the pool, Garrett is a huge sports fan and enjoys golfing and working out in his free time. His dream one day is to compete on the reality TV show  Survivor , of which he considers himself a “superfan”. He also has a love for history, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in history from Gardner-Webb.

 
Liz Dutton Coach - AG1/CAT101/Meet Director

Liz joined Carolina Aquatic Team in the fall of 2019 as a part-time coach who primarily works with Age Group 1 and CAT 101. Liz did not grow up as a competitive swimmer but began coaching at Riverside High School in 2017 as the varsity swim team coach and has been passionate about coaching and helping to develop swimmers since.

Liz has been teaching in Durham Public Schools and Alamance-Burlington Schools since 2010 and is currently an English as a Second Language teacher and department chair at Southeast Alamance High School where she also coaches their team.

A Durham native, Liz currently lives in Graham with her husband, son, and two dogs. 

Kai Sung Coach-Ag2
Kai started coaching in 2004 and joined Carolina Aquatic Team in 2021 as the lead coach for Age Group 2. He grew up in
 
Ohio but has moved around the country quite a bit, including attending college in California and grad school in Maryland as well as living in the Atlanta area for a while before moving here in 2012.
 
He was on swim teams from age 4 through college, thanks to being the youngest of four kids who were all swimmers. He was primarily a butterflier in age group swimming; although he eventually became a breaststroke and IM swimmer, he still retains an unhealthy fondness for butterfly and IM events.
 
Kai lives in Bahama with his wife, five children, and a whole menagerie of pets. He enjoys sports, gaming, and nature.
Jim Kelly Coach - AG2
This is Jim Kelly's 4th season coaching with CAT!  I am working primarily with CAT 101 and Age Group 2 this season. I am a High School Math Teacher at East Chapel Hill HS and I am excited to have all 4 of my children on the team this year!  
 
My swimming career started at age 7 with the Huntington YMCA Bluefish in New York and finished after high school.  When I was 15, I began teaching and coaching swimming and I have been doing it ever since.   With over 20 years of experience, I still love most everything about it.  My favorite stroke to do is butterfly.  My favorite stroke to coach in practice is breaststroke.  My favorite events to coach in meets are distance freestyle. 
 
I am looking forward to another great year!
Cori Dary Coach - AG1
Cori joined Carolina Aquatic Team in the fall of 2022 as a part-time coach for Age Group 1. She grew up swimming competitively since the age of 4 and has been involved in the sport ever since. Growing up, she swam 200 butterfly and distance freestyle. Now she loves working with our younger swimmers on the fundamentals of stroke technique. During the summer, she is also the head swim coach at Eno Valley Swim and Racquet Club.
 
Cori grew up in Raleigh and currently lives in Bahama with her husband Luke, 4 kids, 3 dogs, and a small flock of chickens. She works at Mangum Elementary school. In her free time she enjoys running, swimming, and baking.
 
Board of Directors
Cole Dutton Board Member - Head Coach