Army has hired its second new assistant coach, adding Mike Travers to its staff for the 2012-2013 season. They also added Tim Loeffler from Michigan State to their stable this off-season.
Travers comes from Division II powerhouse LIU-Post, where he spent 10 seasons as an assistant to his sister Maureen Travers. Post’s women’s team finished 8th at the 2013 NCAA Championship meet, including national titles from Joyce Kwok in the 200 fly and the team’s 400 medley relay.
The full press release from Army is below.
WEST POINT, N.Y. – Army swimming and diving head coach Mickey Wender added Mike Travers to his staff on Tuesday. The veteran assistant arrives at West Point following an 11-year stint in a similar capacity at LIU Post down the road in Brookville, N.Y.
“We are very excited to welcome Mike into the Army Swimming and Diving family,” said Wender. “He brings a wealth of experience and a unique perspective that will help continue to move our team to the next level. Mike understands sprinting and the unique demands of those events. His track record speaks for itself; he knows how to bring out the best in the athletes he works with.
“As a New York City firefighter for 20 years, Mike is extremely familiar with the concept of selfless service,” added Wender. “He will relate very well to the young men and women in our program who have also committed themselves to a life of serving others.”
During his time at LIU Post, Travers helped several Pioneers earn All-America honors, and a plethora of his former swimmers won national championships in individual and relay events. He has focused on the sprinters in recent years, and has molded a number of Metropolitan Conference champions over the years. He coached a pair of swimmers to Metropolitan Conference Female Rookie of the Meet honors in 2004 and 2007.
Several of his former student-athletes went on to qualify for the USS Short Course Nationals. The Pioneers excelled in the classroom during Travers’ tenure, as LIU Post was named a CSCAA Scholar All-Academic Team eight straight years from 2004-11.
In 2006, Travers established the Masters Swim Program at LIU Post, and guided the program since its inception.