Kevin Woodhull-Smith Named Inaugural Head Coach at Northern Kentucky
Kevin Woodhull-Smith Named Inaugural Head Coach at Northern Kentucky
Northern Kentucky on Thursday named Kevin Woodhull-Smith the founding head coach of its men’s and women’s swimming program.
Woodhull-Smith was the head coach of men’s and women’s swimming at Barton College in North Carolina for three seasons. He was named the Conference Carolinas Coach of the Year for his work at the Division II school on three occasions. The women won the conference title in 2021, and he finished no worse than third in the six championship meets.
“I am very excited to be named the first head swim Coach at NKU,” Woodhull-Smith said in a university statement. “Adding a NCAA Division I men’s and women’s swim team is an amazing thing for college swimming. I want to thank Vice President and Director of Athletics Christina for this great opportunity to lead the new swim team at NKU.”
Woodhull-Smith was an assistant coach for eight seasons at East Carolina, leading the Pirates men’s team to four American Athletic Conference titles. He was a graduate assistant at NC State, where he graduated in 2010, as well as a swim coach at Greensboro Community YMCA, Enfinity Aquatic Club and East Carolina Aquatics. Woodhull-Smith swam at NC State, qualifying for Olympic Trials in 2008 in the 200 individual medley.
“We are excited to introduce Kevin as the first head men’s and women’s swimming coach at NKU,” athletic director Christina Roybal said. “He has a proven track record of recruiting student-athletes and focusing on building confidence during training and the mental preparation to develop successful swimmers.”
Northern Kentucky is adding men’s and women’s swimming for the 2024-25 academic year.