Saginaw Valley State University has announced that Jason Lintjer will take over as head coach of the men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams effective May 1, 2020. Lintjer will make the move after having served as head coach of both men’s and women’s swimming at nearby Alma College, about an hour away, for the past 3 seasons.
He replaces Bruce Zimmerman, who led the program for 6 years before retired after the 2019-2020 season.
Saginaw Valley State is a Division II school, while Alma is a Division III school.
During his time at Alma College, Lintjer was responsible for the recruitment of over 40 athletes to the program, doubling the size of the team’s roster. In his final season, Lintjer coached the women’s and men’s teams to 5th and 6th place finishes, respectively at the 2020 MIAA Champions in February. This will be Lintjer’s first NCAA Division 2 coaching position.
A Michigan native, Lintjer grew up in Grand Haven in the western part of the state. He previously coached at another D3 school in Michigan, Kalamazoo College for the 2016-2017 season.
Saginaw Valley State finished the 2019-2020 season with last place finishes (6th out of 6 teams) at the 2020 GLIAC Championships.. Leading the men’s team this year was senior Jayden Hutchinson who holds school records in the 200 free, 200 fly, 400 free relay and 800 free relay. Despite not having any NCAA D2 invitees this year, SVSU has sent athletes to compete in the past, including seniors Amanda Thielen (swimming) and Elizabeth Caird (diving).
Lintjer will take as head coach from Bruce Zimmerman who has headed the teams for the past six seasons. In his time as head coach, Zimmerman amassed 59 dual meet victories and has sent 10 swimmers to NCAA D2 Championships.
Of the hire, SVSU director of athletics John Decker said;
“We are very pleased to welcome Jason to our SVSU Athletics team and look forward to working with a person who has enjoyed success at every stage of his career,” said Decker. “As a student-athlete, assistant coach and head coach, Jason has improved each program that he has touched. He is a great recruiter and motivator who will fit in very well with our program. We look forward to bringing even greater excitement and excellence to our Gerstacker complex, which is one of the finest natatoriums in the Midwest.”
Best of luck coach!