Rich Munson is in his third season as an assistant coach of New York University’s men’s and women’s swimming & diving teams. He also serves as an assistant natatorium manager at NYU’s Palladium Athletic Facility (PAF) and at the Coles Sports Center.
In 2013-14, Munson helped lead both programs to successful campaigns, as each posted identical 6-2 dual meet records. The women’s squad captured first place at the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships and finished fifth at the University Athletic Association (UAA) Championships. The Violet men recorded their second consecutive second-place ECAC finish and placed sixth at the UAA’s.
Last season, Munson also helped coach All-American Emily Doerner, who finished eighth in the 100-yard freestyle at the NCAA Championships.
The 2013-14 season also saw NYU’s athletes rewrite the team’s record books. On the men’s side, senior Charlie Wu established new marks for both the 100-yard and 200-yard backstroke, while junior Matt Kendall set the record for the 200-yard breaststroke. Wu and Kendall also teamed with freshman Daniel Tay and junior Jerry Crowley to establish records for the 200-yard and 400-yard medley relays, while freshman Jason Bo set a new standard for the 200-yard butterfly and junior Austen Blease set the Violet mark for the one-meter dive (11).
On the women’s side, Doerner established new school records in the 100-yard backstroke and 100-yard breaststroke, and combined with sophomore Krista Traub and freshmen Katie Webber and Elise Gibbs to set records in the 200-yard medley, 400-yard medley, 200-yard free, and 400-yard free relays. Webber also set a new standard for the 200-yard breaststroke, while freshmen divers Ashley Pankonin and Nia Sorgente established new marks for the one-meter dive (6) and three-meter dive (6), respectively.
In his first season with the Violets, Munson helped lead the men’s team to a second-place finish at the ECAC Championships and to a seventh-place finish at the UAA Championships. Meanwhile, the women’s team took fourth and seventh at the ECAC and UAA Championships, respectively.
Before coming to NYU, Munson served as an assistant coach at the Stevens Institute of Technology from 2007-12 under current Violet Head Coach Trevor Miele. In his five seasons as an assistant, Munson helped produce 16 NCAA All-Americans and 24 NCAA Honorable Mention All-Americans. In his final season at Stevens, both teams posted their highest-ever finishes at the NCAA Championships, with the women placing fifth and the men 11th.
A 2000 graduate of Seton Hall University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in social and behavioral sciences, Munson was a four-year member of the Pirates’ swimming & diving team. He graduated with three individual school records and one relay record and was named the Seton Hall Athlete of the Year in 1999.
A native of Maplewood, NJ, Munson resides in Hoboken, NJ.
