Aug. 15, 2006

MILWAUKEE - Dave Griffore is the new men's and women's swimming coach at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, athletic director Bud Haidet announced today.

Griffore comes to the Panthers from Eastern Michigan, where he spent the past six years in roles of graduate assistant, associate coach and assistant coach for the Eagles.

"I am extremely excited and honored to be the next head swimming coach at UWM," Griffore said. "I look forward to working with the great young athletes and administration in building a championship program. I would like to thank Bud Haidet and the University for giving me a chance to come back to Wisconsin and work for such a great school. I look forward to getting the swimming program to the top of the conference and joining the other successful UW-Milwaukee programs."

"I am pleased to announce Dave Griffore as the new swimming & diving head coach at UWM," Haidet said. "His background and experience make him an excellent fit for the program. He comes from a university with a winning tradition in the sport and has proven to be an excellent recruiter. He also has ties to the state of Wisconsin that will serve him well at UWM."

Griffore experienced a very successful run while at Eastern Michigan, coaching 85 Mid-American Conference champions on both the men's and women's side. EMU won the first-ever MAC women's title in school history last season, while also claiming five-consecutive men's conference titles (2001 through 2005) during his tenure.

He has ties to Wisconsin and the area, having served as the head coach of the Oshkosh YMCA prior to his stint at Eastern. While at the YMCA, he coached four individual state champions and 17 national qualifiers and won back-to-back championships.

Other coaching stops include a year as the head coach of the Gold Vault Swim Club in Kentucky and one season as an assistant coach at the University of New Mexico. He has high school coaching experience as well, serving at Menual High School in New Mexico and Fort Knox High School in Kentucky.

The Minnesota native graduated from the University of New Mexico in 1996 with a degree in criminology, while adding a masters degree from Eastern Michigan University in Human Resources and Organizational Development. He was a seven-time Western Athletic Conference champion while in the pool for the Lobos, claiming an individual title in the 50 freestyle. He was a four-year letterwinner who served as a team captain for two years and also received the Lobo Award as a senior, recognizing the best overall teammate as voted on by the coaches and squad.

Griffore, just the third head coach since UWM permanently moved to the NCAA Division I level in 1990, replaces Dave Clark, who stepped down in June to move into an administrative position within the school's athletic department. He takes over a Milwaukee squad that set four Horizon League records, 23 school records and will bring back returners that claimed 14 first or second team all-league honors a year ago.

Griffore will officially begin his duties at UWM on Sept. 1.