Indiana has added Dana Grindall to its coaching staff for the upcoming 2026-2027 season, the school announced Friday. Grindall will serve as assistant head coach and director of on-campus recruiting.
“We are excited to welcome Dana to Indiana swimming,” Indiana head coach Ray Looze said. “Her recent experience at both Colgate and Yale has prepared her at an elite level to help lead our program. She is an exceptional communicator and outstanding coach on both a technical and training basis. Her recruiting ability is particularly key in this new climate. Dana fits perfectly with our athlete-centric coaching philosophy. We look forward to what we can accomplish with her in Bloomington!”
Grindall arrives after spending three seasons as an assistant coach at Yale. The Yale men finished t-34th at the 2026 NCAA Championships as Nick Finch and Noah Millard combined for 17 points. Caroline Riggs represented the Yale women’s program at 2026 NCAAs.
Prior to arriving at Yale, Grindall spent her time at the club level with Chelsea Piers Aquatic Club in Connecticut. She began her full-time coaching career at Colgate, serving as an assistant coach, head sprint coach, and recruiting coordinator.
Grindall makes her return to the Big Ten as she spent her collegiate career at Wisconsin. She graduated from Wisconsin in 2017 with a bachelor’s degree in human development and family studies. She notably was a Big Ten Champion, All-American, and school record holder for the Badgers. She also was a team captain as a senior during the 2016-2017 season.
Grindall fills the position previously held by Noelle Peplowski. The school announced Peplowski’s departure yesterday as she “pursues opportunities outside the sport.” Peplowski had spent the last eight years with Indiana, first as an athlete and then as a coach.
Does Indiana have like 15 associate/assistant head coaches?
6 people on staff with “head coach” in the title.
wow thats actually crazy, also 4 team managers? Im ignorant as i swam for a small d2 team and then coached for a gold medal club, but is this normal for D1 teams of this size? i mean more eyes on deck is always great but it seems bloated
Drew answers directly to the AD, so it’s safe to assume dive has it’s own budget outside of swim.
Former IU manager here, 2016-2020, when I started, we had typically 2 diving managers (we didn’t have much crossover, so I could be wrong), and 4-5 swimming managers–typically tried to have two managers at any overnight meet and training trips, so it allowed us to manage school and help out at meets. Plus typically one or two each day during practice.
Using the title changes to get staff members for money for their salary. Because Indiana supports Olympic sports and swimming, people should be happy about this, a school supporting and taking care of good coaches. Salute to Ray for fighting for this and for the AD for supporting swimming like this.
https://swimswam.com/indiana-hires-blaire-bachman-new-assistant/#comments
Congratulations and Good Luck from Connecticut!