Courtesy: FIU Sports
MIAMI – FIU swimming & diving head coach Randy Horner announced the hiring of Alejandra Fuentes as the program’s head diving coach on Tuesday.
Fuentes joins the Panthers after spending the past two seasons as the head diving coach at St. Bonaventure, where she led both the men’s and women’s diving programs in the Atlantic 10 Conference.
“I am very excited to start working with the Panthers, and I look forward to contributing to the team’s success,” Fuentes said. “This is a great opportunity to grow professionally while supporting our student-athletes and being part of a dedicated, competitive environment.”
Fuentes enjoyed a standout 2025-26 season with the Bonnies, earning Atlantic 10 Women’s Diving Coach of the Year honors after guiding sophomore Dhavgely Mendoza to conference titles on both the 1-meter and 3-meter boards. Mendoza became just the third student-athlete in program history to earn Atlantic 10 Women’s Most Outstanding Diver honors.
On the men’s side, Ben O’Neill captured a silver medal in the 1-meter event at the 2026 Atlantic 10 Championships. Mendoza currently holds the St. Bonaventure school records on both boards, while O’Neill set the program’s men’s 1-meter record during the 2025-26 season.
In her first season with the Bonnies in 2024-25, Fuentes guided both Mendoza and O’Neill to NCAA Zone Championship appearances. Mendoza earned a silver medal in the 1-meter dive at the Atlantic 10 Championships, while O’Neill also claimed silver in the men’s 1-meter competition.
“From the start, I wanted to make sure we found the right person for our program, not just someone to fill the position,” Horner said. “It was important to find a coach who believes in our one-team culture, builds strong relationships and truly cares about helping student-athletes grow both in and out of the pool. Alejandra showed us all of those qualities throughout the process. Her coaching experience, international background and passion for developing athletes make her a great fit for FIU, and we’re excited about what she will bring to our program.”
Fuentes brings an accomplished international résumé to FIU, highlighted by more than 20 years of coaching experience and an Olympic career as a diver.
A native of Venezuela, Fuentes represented her country at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. She also earned bronze medals at the 2006 Rome Grand Prix and 2006 Madrid Grand Prix while placing fifth at the 2005 FINA World Championships in Montreal.
Prior to joining St. Bonaventure, Fuentes spent seven years as an assistant diving coach for the Venezuelan National Team before relocating to Seattle, where she served as head coach of Alpha Diving Club. There, she developed divers who competed at the AAU and USA Diving National Championships while also coaching at the high school level in Washington.
Fuentes is a certified international diving coach and holds USA Diving safety training certification.
This is a great hire! Ale is an exceptional coach and has the ability to elevate any dive program and diver she comes in contact with. She is the ultimate team player and will be an asset to the FIU Swim & Dive Program.
Above all that, she is one the of greatest people you will ever meet.
I am proud to have coached alongside her for these past two years.
Best of luck in Miami!