The women’s-only program at Boise State has named Kirk Ermels as their new assistant swim coach. His previous stops were at UNC-Asheville, which will give him a unique perspective on the relatively-new Boise State program.
The Broncos are still building their national reputation after 7 seasons in existence, but Ermels’ former employer at Asheville is just one year old, having kicked things off in 2012-2013 with the revival of their women’s program.
The program, despite being brand new, already was showing signs of life. They finished 9th out of 13 teams at the Coastal Collegiate Swimming Championships, including a runner-up finish from Galen Broido in the 1650 freestyle with Ermels and head coach Elizabeth Lykins leading the way.
He also has previous stops as the head coach of the Helena Lions Swim Team and two high school teams in Montana, where he also served in several administrative and All-Star roles for the state. With the Lions, he built them from a team without sectionals qualifiers into a team with qualifiers for junior and senior nationals, and was a three-time Montana Coach of the Year.
He joins the staff of Kristin Hill at Boise State, replacing outgoing assistant Justin Brosseau who was elevated to associate head coach before last season.
The Broncos are in a built of a rebuilding phase after hitting a high water mark in the 2011-2012 season, where they qualified their first-ever relays for the NCAA Championships and finished 47th overall. Three of the four NCAA qualifiers from that season have since graduated.
Sydney Johahsen, the 4th swimmers, will return for her junior season next year.
