Jensen Nelson has announced he will transfer to Miami-OH for the upcoming school year after spending his freshman season with Pitt. Nelson’s transfer follows former Pitt associate head coach Samantha Pitter who was hired as the next head coach of Miami-OH earlier this month.
“I am so thankful to announce that I have decided to continue my academic and athletic career at Miami University! Thank you to all the coaches at Spartan Aquatic club and the University of Pittsburgh for making this possible!!”
Nelson spent his freshman year with the Panthers, concluding his season at the ACC Championships. There he was 36th in both the 100 back (48.91) and 200 back (1:48.59) as well as 39th in the 200 IM (1:49.12). All three of his swims were off of both his season and personal best times but faster than he was in high school.
His fastest meet of his freshman season was at midseason. There he swam a 48.83 in the 100 back, 1:45.80 in the 200 back, and a 1:49.03 in the 200 IM.
| High School | Mid-Season | ACCs | |
| 100 back | 49.00 | 48.83 | 48.91 |
| 200 back | 1:46.11 | 1:45.80 | 1:48.59 |
| 200 IM | 1:51.93 | 1:49.03 | 1:49.12 |
The Miami-OH men captured the 2024 Mid-American Conference (MAC) title, scoring a total of 724 points. That was the team’s 4th MAC title in a row.
Henju Duvenhage led the team at the MAC Championships winning all three of his individual events, the 100 back (46.17), 100 fly (46.37), and 200 IM (1:43.96). Duvenhage notably just finished his senior season but has the potential to return for his COVID-19 fifth year.
Nelson’s time from mid-season in the 200 back would have been #2 on the team’s roster this past season as Owen Blazer led the team with a 1:45.71. Nelson also would have been the team’s 4th fastest 200 IMer and 4th fastest 100 backstroker.
Great choice Jensen! Sam is such a good fit for him! I’ve watched them work together and they thrive together. Excited to see how he does.
It’s an encouraging sign regarding the hire that a swimmer would follow Coach Pitter. Particularly given the quality of the coaching at Pitt.
I actually think it’s BECAUSE of the “quality of coaching (that remains) at Pitt”
From what I’ve heard is that they do a ton of garbage yards with very little quality. I’d say the last coach with a good quality background is Kevin A. I’ve heard he’s a sprint god but isn’t able to work with the swimmers because of the head coach overwriting him.