Jay Agnew Named Assistant Coach at Purdue

WEST LAFAYETTE, Indiana, July 9. PURDUE men's swimming and diving head coach Dan Ross today announced the hiring of Jay Agnew as the program's new assistant coach and recruiting coordinator.

Agnew replaces four-year assistant Bill Weaver, who resigned in May to pursue a master's degree in environmental engineering.

Agnew's official start date is set for Aug. 1; however he won't join the Boilermakers on deck until the conclusion of next month's U.S.S. Nationals.

"This is an incredible opportunity for me to work at a well-respected and nationally recognized university," said Agnew. "My first priority is to get a jump start on recruiting, and then I'll do whatever I can to make sure the Boilermakers reach all their goals.

Before accepting the job at Purdue, Agnew was a successful coach with Yorktown High School and the Yorktown Swim Club. Agnew's knowledge of the Indiana recruiting base greatly impressed Ross.

"Jay is not only one of the most respected coaches in Indiana, but across the nation," said Ross, who is preparing to lead the Boilermakers for a 23rd season. "A lot of people could have taken this job, but J. wanted it the most and is ready to accept the challenge. He's going to work very hard in this position."

Agnew says he ready to work for Purdue and learn whatever he can from Ross.

"Dan carries a wealth of knowledge and is one of this sport's best representatives when it comes to fairness and achieving excellence," said Agnew.

Agnew brought the Yorktown H.S. swimming program to unprecedented heights during his seven-year tenure, coaching eight individual state champions and 22 high school All-Americans. In his final season with the Tigers, Agnew produced seven swimmers who are continuing on to compete for NCAA Division I schools.

The Yorktown boys and girls squads combined for 10 top-10 state finishes under Agnew's watch, which included a runner-up showing by his girls' team in 2006. Agnew was named Indiana High School Girl's Swimming Coach of the Year following the 2003-04 season after leading the team to a fourth-place finish.

Ross said he's had his eye on Agnew for a long time and wanted him to apply for the vacancy that was eventually filled by Weaver in 2003.

"Purdue wasn't the right fit for J. four years ago, but he was more than ready this time around to accept our offer," said Ross. "This was the best pool of candidates I've come across, and I give a lot of credit to Bill and Adam (Soldati) for helping make this program such an appealing one."

Agnew graduated from Ball State University in 1996 with a bachelor of science degree in mathematics education.

Special thanks to Purdue for contributing this report.

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