LSU Adds Jessica Botzum as Assistant

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana, July 16. JESSICA Botzum, who recently wrapped up a remarkable career at Virginia Tech as arguably the greatest swimmer in school history, has joined the LSU swimming and diving coaching staff, head coach Adam Schmitt announced Tuesday.

Botzum is the second assistant Schmitt has hired this summer. Former Maryland assistant Kevin Clements came on board in June.

"I am very excited to welcome Jessica into the Tiger swimming and diving family," Schmitt said. "I believe she will bring great energy and excitement to the program with her dedication and drive in the sport of swimming."

Throughout her stellar four-year career in Blacksburg, Va., Botzum truly exemplified the meaning of a student-athlete, succeeding at the highest levels, not only in the pool, but in the classroom as well.

As a swimmer, Botzum shattered numerous records and racked up a plethora of accolades. By the end of her collegiate career, the Raleigh, N.C., native had earned eight NCAA All-America honors and had captured five Atlantic Coast Conference titles. Furthermore, she became the only swimmer in Hokie history to be named the ACC Swimmer of the Year, receiving the conference's highest individual honor in both her junior and senior seasons.

In addition, she broke five school records during her career and set a new ACC record in the 200-yard breaststroke last season.

Earlier this month, Botzum competed on the country's largest stage at the United States Olympic Team Trials in Omaha, Neb. She placed ninth in the 100-meter breaststroke, missing the final round of the event by only 0.02 seconds, and finished 18th in the 200m breast.

"To have a coach that has reached the athletic levels that she has will only reinforce the expectations and goals of the team and the individual athletes here at LSU," Schmitt added.

Outside of the pool, Botzum was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America team for the second straight year and received a prestigious ACC postgraduate scholarship.

A three-time Academic All-ACC selection, the Tigers' newest coach recently graduated with a degree in biology.

Special thanks to LSU for contributing this report.

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