University of Northern Iowa Women's Swimming & Diving

Nick Lakin enters his sixth season as UNI swimming and diving head coach in 2022. During his tenure, UNI has won two relay events and thirteen individual conference titles. Eleven different swimmers have received first team All-MVC honors, including Crystal Florman who captured MVC Swimmer of the Year honors in 2019. In 2018-19, Lakin guided UNI to a fourth place finish at the MVC Championships in Columbia, Missouri. Seven swimmers earned first team or honorable mention All-MVC honors. Katie Taylor was awarded the Elite 17 award for athletics and academic performance. The Panthers collected victories in the 200 and 400 medley relays, breaking school records in both races. Florman won three individual events en route to Swimmer of the Year honors. Taylor and Moriah Ross claimed two individual titles each. During his first season at the helm, Lakin led the Panthers to a third place finish at the MVC Championships in Iowa City. Nine swimmers and divers earned first team or honorable mention All-MVC honors including two-event champion Katie Taylor. Six school records fell during the 2017-18 season. Taylor broke the conference record in the 400 individual medley at the MVC Championships. Diver Izzy Bunchek competed in the NCAA Zone competition. Prior to UNI, Lakin served as the head coach and program director for the Black Hawk Area Swim Team. Beginning in 2003, he designed and implemented competitive swimming progressions for more than 200 athletes aged 5-22. He developed and mai

The UNI Swimming and Diving team has announced the hiring of Ben Colin as the team’s Assistant Coach. “Throughout the process Ben demonstrated his passion fo...

Bethany Hovland took over as the head diving coach for the UNI Panthers in August 2018. Hovland earned the MVC Diving Coach of the Year recognition in 2022 a...

Ethan Jacobsen joined the UNI swimming and diving coaching staff ahead of the 2023-24 season as an assistant swim coach. Jacobsen, a 2014 UNI graduate and Normal, Illinois native, returns to Cedar Falls after five seasons coaching at Missouri State. In the last three seasons with the Bears, Jacobsen coached three Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) women’s champions, including Anna Miller, who became Missouri State’s first-ever swimmer to qualify for the NCAA Championships. Miller, along with teammate Libby Howell earned MVC Swimmer of the Year honors in 2021 and 2022 respectively. On the men’s side, Jacobsen was part of two runner-up finishes (2021, 2023) and a third place finish (2022) with the Bears at the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Championships. During that three-year span, he coached 2022 MAC Swimmer of the Year Dylan Moffatt, as well as the conference’s most outstanding senior three straight years with Michael Clauch (2021), Pawel Krawczyk (2022) and Tyler Lewis (2023). The 2019-20 season was historic for Jacobsen and the Bears, who swept both the MVC women’s and MAC men’s team titles. The Missouri State women earned their fourth straight and 16th overall championships with seven individual and three relay wins to finish the meet with 826.5 points. On the men’s side, the Bears were just as dominant at the MAC Championship meet, winning ten conference titles with senior Antonio Thomas being recognized as the MAC’s Co-Swimmer of the Year and Most Outstanding Senior. In h

Faith Larsen joined the UNI swimming and diving coaching staff ahead of the 2025-26 season, with focus in coaching Panther sprinters. A three-time All-Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) performer, Larsen was among UNI's top sprinters, becoming the first three-time individual conference champion in program history with titles in the 50-yard freestyle in 2023, 2024 and 2025, while also winning the 100-yard freestyle crown as a senior. She finished her career with three school records in the 50-yard freestyle (22.34), the 200-yard freestyle relay (1:30.71) and the 400-yard freestyle (3:19.16). Larsen also finished her college career ranked in the top-ten in school history in eight events.