Brownell named head swimming and diving coach at Olivet College

OLIVET, Mich. – Rob Brownell has been named head men's and women's swimming and diving coach at Olivet College, according to an announcement by Director of Athletics Ryan Shockey.

"I am very excited about being the head swimming and diving coach at Olivet College," said Brownell. "I see the potential in Olivet becoming a championship program in the near future. Being from Marshall, I am also excited about coaching a local team and liked the close-knit family culture that was shown by everyone during the interview process."

Brownell comes to Olivet after serving as the head swimming and diving coach at Battle Creek Central High School (BCCHS) since 2005. After coaching only the boys' team for the first six years, he has coached both the girls' and boys' teams for the last six seasons. While there, Brownell's teams saw continuous improvement and multiple students went on to compete at all NCAA levels. 

Prior to BCCHS, Brownell was the head girls' swimming and diving coach at San Pasqual High School in Esconido, California, for four years. During each year of his tenure, the Eagles were conference champion and placed top 10 at the state championship meet.

Brownell attended San Diego State University. While there, he was a member of the varsity crew team from 1996-99.

"I could not be happier about adding Rob to our coaching staff," said Shockey. "He has a lot of great high school coaching experience and I look forward to seeing what he brings to a collegiate program."

Brownell lives in Marshall with his wife, Beth, and two children, Miriam and Thane. Beth is a second-grade teacher at Hughes Elementary School in Marshall.