Alicia Bungum, Head Coach, Senior 

Email: [email protected]

From: Green Bay, Wisconsin

Favorite Stroke: Backstroke

Favorite Swimmer: Lenny Krayzelburg

Alicia is in her 7th year as Head Coach of the Mandan Marlins. During those seven years, the Mandan Marlins has doubled in size. In summer 2024, she was named the North Dakota Coach of the Year. She is an American Swim Coaches Association Level 3 Swim Coach. Alicia grew up swimming in Texas, Michigan, and Wisconsin. She swam for the University of Chicago (D-III) for four years and was captain for two years, receiving Honorable Mention Academic All-American and the Coach's Award. Alicia coached for the Green Bay YMCA as assistant age group coach for three years, and for three years as Head Coach for Ursuline High School Girls and Duchesne High School Girls in St. Louis, Missouri.

Alicia is married to Donnie (Philosophy Professor at the University of Mary) and homeschools their five children: Josie (11), Mara (9), Peter (7), and Andrew (4), and Vera (5 months). 

 

Grace Kuntz, Assistant Coach, Intermediate 2

Email: [email protected] 

From: Mandan, ND

Favorite Stroke: Backstroke

Favorite Swimmer: Missy Franklin

Grace has been with the Marlins for 18 years: 9 as a swimmer and 9 as a coach. She is an American Swim Coaches Association Level 1 SwimCoach. She has been named Assistant Coach of the Year twice by the Head Coach. Her strengths are a technical understanding of all four strokes, and the ability to help swimmers develop stronger, more efficient strokes. She swam distance events in her own career, and enjoys helping swimmers prepare for those events with set times and splits. Grace graduated in 2022 with her bachelors degree in business administration from Dickinson State University. She currently works full time at Sauber and Associates, doing payroll, bookkeeping, and tax preparation.

 

 

Jake Klassen, Assistant Coach, Intermediate 1

 

From: Boise, Idaho

Favorite Stroke: Butterfly, Underwater (5th stroke)

Favorite Swimmer: Micheal Phelps

This is Jake's third season with the Mandan Marlins. During his swimming career, Jake was a Canadian Olympic Trials Qualifier, College of Idaho record holder, and two time All American. He was the founding head coach for Owyhee High School in Idaho and was an Assistant Coach for Boise YMCA. He focuses on stroke efficiency, technique, goal setting, and career progression planning. Jake is currently a doctoral student in Physical Therapy at the University of Mary.


Zara Klassen, Assistant Coach, Intermediate 1

 

From: Anaheim, CA

Favorite Stroke: Backstroke

Favorite Swimmer: Rebecca Soni

This is Zara's third season with the Mandan Marlins. Zara swam at the club level for 15 years and then went on to swim for three seasons at the College Idaho. She has been a private lesson coach for nine years, a club coach for four years, and a high school coach for three years. Zara has great enthusiasm for the sport of swimming, technical knowledge, and analysis of meet strategy. She currently works full-time as a 4th grade teacher at Rita Murphy Elementary. 

 

Grace Goettle, Assistant Coach, Developmental 2

 

Hometown: Mandan, ND

Favorite Stroke: Breastroke
 
Favorite Swimmer: Katie Ledecky
 
A senior in high school, this is Grace's 9th year swimming with the Marlins, and her 3rd year coaching for the Marlins. Her biggest strength is knowing the importance of having a good foundation in swimming technique. She attends high school at the School of the Holy Family and swims for both the Marlins and the Mandan Braves team. 
 
 
 
 

 

Sam Wiederholt, Assistant Coach, Developmental 2

Katelynn Kitzmann, Assistant Coach, Developmental 1

Mandy Herberholz, Assistant Coach, Developmental 1