Eileen Hall, a long-time coach whose charges lay claim to most of the Saint Michael's school records, returns for her 10th season as head coach of the men's and women's swimming & diving programs in 2019-20, and 11th overall with the teams.
The 2018-19 men's team went 4-4 in dual action, posting its best record since 2009-10, while claiming a sixth-place showing at the Northeast-10 Conference Championship, its top finish in four seasons. Connor Hopkins '20 made history at the NE10 Championship, winning the 50-yard freestyle to become the third Purple Knight to win an event at the league meet, but the first male. In all, the men and women combined to break 12 school records during the season while also both winning the mid-season North Country Invitational, a first for the men and a third straight triumph for the women.
Thirteen program records fell during the 2017-18 season, including 11 at the year-end Northeast-10 Conference Championship, where the men and women each garnered their second-highest point totals since 2009-10. During the dual season, the women claimed eight victories, their most since 1996-97, and earned at least five wins for the fourth straight season, the program's longest run since a five-year streak that ended in 1996-97. The men registered their most wins in eight years.
The 2016-17 school year ended in historic fashion, as Lindsay McNall '17 became the first Saint Michael's swimmer to qualify for an NCAA Championship, ultimately claiming an All-America finish in the 100-yard backstroke and single-handedly lifting the Purple Knights to a 40th-place team showing, the first team finish ever for Saint Michael's at the national meet.
The Purple and Gold women finished the dual season at 5-3, marking their third straight campaign of at least five wins for the first time since 2000-01 to 2002-03, while taking seventh at the NE10 Championship with their highest point total in seven years. McNall set a league championship mark in the 200 back (2:00.03) with the third-best time in NE10 history, while Genevieve Gigandet '18 had the highest placement by a Purple Knight diver at the conference meet in seven seasons. Seven school records were downed during the season. Despite fielding 11 swimmers and no divers for the majority of the campaign, the Purple Knight men picked up a pair of dual triumphs and outscored a third opponent during swimming events. A balanced group neared its highest NE10 Championship point total over the past seven seasons while setting a pair of school records.
During the 2015-16 season, Purple Knights combined to set 11 school records. The women's squad went 6-3 in dual competitions, claiming at least six victories in back-to-back winters for the first time since 2001-02 and 2002-03. Both teams continued their annual success at the year-end New England Intercollegiate Swimming & Diving Association (NEISDA) Championship, as the women were fourth out of 21 schools, while the men took fifth among 12. The women posted their fourth consecutive fourth-place finish at the meet, continuing an unprecedented run of success. The men notched 339.5 points - their most at the championship in 15 years - en route to their second straight fifth-place performance despite entering no divers.
Hall's student-athletes continued to make history during 2014-15, combining to break 18 school records in addition to finding team success. The women, who set seven standards, finished 6-3 in dual competitions, posting their highest win total since 2008-09 while matching their best figure since 1996-97. A seventh-place showing out of nine schools at the NE10 Championship equaled their top performance there in six seasons. The women were fourth at the NEISDA Championship for an unprecedented third consecutive season, while the men nabbed fifth, falling just 1.5 points short of their first fourth-place showing since 2000-01. A female diver qualified for NEISDAs for the first time since 2009-10, while the men, who broke 11 records during the winter, sent divers to the regional meet for the first time since 2010-11. One swimmer provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championship during the season.
In the winter of 2013-14, Purple Knight women claimed fourth out of 20 schools at the season-ending NEISDA Championship, just 20 points short of third place, while finishing among the top five at the NEISDA meet during consecutive seasons for the first time since 2003-04 and 2004-05. The men were seventh out of 12 but were just 13 points shy of sixth place. During the season, 10 combined school records were broken by Saint Michael's men and women, while one swimmer provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championship.
The Purple Knight teams both had historic finishes at the NEISDA Championship in 2012-13 despite sending no divers to the meet. The women took fourth among 21 teams, their best showing since 2008-09, and just their third top-four showing since 2001-02. The men grabbed fifth place out of 11, matching their best showing since taking fourth in 2000-01. In dual meets, the women finished 5-4, one win short of matching the program's highest total since 1995-96. Purple Knights combined to set seven school marks during the 2012-13 season.
In 2011-12, the women also went 5-4, while both squads took sixth at the NEISDA meet. The female student-athletes combined to set 12 school records, with one swimmer provisionally qualifying for the NCAA Championship in three events. Hall's men broke six program standards. In her first season as head coach, in 2010-11, Hall helped guide the Saint Michael's women to four dual-meet victories, and both the men's and women's programs to top-eight finishes at the NEISDA Championship. Hall was an assistant coach with the programs in 2009-10, when the two teams combined for a 10-9 dual mark.
Hall graduated from the NCAA Women Coaches Academy in 2013 and has a wealth of swimming & diving coaching experience at a variety of levels. For two weeks during summer 2019, Hall coached at the University of Georgia's prestigious Bauerle Bulldog Swim Camp. In summer 2016, she was the only woman invited to staff the Northeast Swimming Prospect Showcases in Bristol, R.I. Since 2005, she has served as the head coach of the Green Mountain Aquatics (GMA) senior group, training athletes ages 13 to 18 years old at the Ross Sports Center pool as they prepare for regional and Junior National competition. While with GMA, Hall has been the principal on-deck coach at the New England Open Championships, the New England 14-and-Under Championships, and the New England regionals. Hall also spent 14 months in 2005 and 2006 as the head coach of the Winooski Swim Club, training athletes ages 6 to 18 years old.
Prior to moving to Vermont, Hall served three years as the swimming head coach at Two Harbors (Minn.) High School, coaching approximately 30 high school athletes annually. Two Harbors finished in the top three in its conference every year during Hall’s tenure, and she helped advance two athletes to the Minnesota State High School Championships. Hall also spent three years as the head coach of the Kingston (Tenn.) Clippers Swim Club in the mid-1990s.
