David Krotiak
Head Coach
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Dave brings
a strong history of experience and success to the FOX Valley Swim
Team. As the Head Coach of the Westmont Swim Club, Dave had
Five individuals ranked #1 in the
United States
throughout his tenure there. Additionally he had over fifty
individuals ranked in the top 16 in the
United States
. David helped four individuals qualify to the Olympic
Trials in 2000. His career has been filled with numerous
Junior and Senior National swimmers.
Through Dave's leadership, Westmont Swim Club earned 12 Illinois
State Championship titles, including eight consecutive
titles. Additionally the club finished top three in the state
over 25 times.
Dave's emphasis on athlete oriented coaching and stroke mechanics
will lead the FOX Valley Swim Team to the next level of
competitiveness.
Len Penkala
13/14 coach
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Len is
the head coach for the 13/14 swimmers. Len is also a PE
teacher at
Neuqua
Valley
High School, and a founding member of The
Fox Valley swim Team.
Jason Niforatos
11/12 coach
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Coach Jason grew up
in
Glen Ellyn
and went to high school at Glenbard South. He swam park district
and club from ages 8 to 14, but stopped in high school because
there was no team. From there he went to the
College
of
DuPage
where he swam for a year and was a 2 time All-American. He then
went on to the
University
of
Iowa
where he got a bachelors degree in business. He then went to
Roosevelt
University
to obtain his teaching certificate in secondary education. He
currently works at
Neuqua
Valley
High School
and competes in triathlons in his spare time. Coach Jason has
several years coaching experience starting at the park district
level. From there he has spent the last five years with the
Naperville Riptide Swim Team working with every level and age
group. In the summer of 2005 he was invited to coach at the
Stanford University National Swim Camp. He really looks forward to
the aiding in the progression of the Fox Swim Team.
Jan Jensen
9/10 coach, 11/12 assistant coach
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Jan Jensen has been coaching for many years in the Chicagoland
area for several teams. She has coached several TOP 16 swimmers and
many state champions. She is a Level 3 coach with the American Swim
Coaches Association, and also works part time at the Rush Copley
Healthplex in Aurora.
Ashley Cusack
11/12 coach, 13/14 assistant coach
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Ashley Natonski
8&U coach, Team Development coach
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Ashley started swimming before she turned one and it has been a
part of her life ever since. She has been swimming at Naperville
Park District teams and for Neuqua Valley High School. Ashley
broadened her love of swimming by teaching others how to swim for
many, many years. Four years ago she decided to take the leap into
the coaching aspect of swimming. She worked as an assistant coach
for the Joliet and Morris Stingrays. After getting her feet wet,
she got a position as the Lead Coach for the 8 and Unders with Fox
Valley Swim Team. It was a position she absolutely loved. She then
took a position for the Carmel Swim Club in Carmel, IN where she
worked as the Discovery 2 Swim Coach.
Since returning to Illinois, she rejoined the Fox Valley Swim
Team. She will be working as the Lead Coach for the 8 and Unders at
Waubonsie and will also be coaching the 9/10 and 11/12 Team
Development Groups at Waubonsie as well.
Meghan L Mason
8 and under coach
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Meghan is very passionate about swimming. She has been involved
with the sport since she was nine years old on a summer swim team.
Soon after swimming on her summer team, she signed up for the Fox
Valley Swim Team. She has been involved with the team ever since
and is very excited to be on the deck coaching. Meghan also swam at
Neuqua Valley High School and the University of Illinois
Urbana-Champaign. She was a captain on both of those teams. Her
hope is to motivate and influence young athletes; much like her
coaches did throughout her career.Outside of the pool, Meghan
graduated from the University of Illinois with a Bachelor’s
Degree in Elementary Education. She is looking forward to an
exciting season with the young Fox athletes!
Devin Kummer
9/10 coach
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Miss. Devin Kummer will be entering her 6th season
with FOX Valley Swim Team. Her progressive experience has enabled
her to significantly impact productivity and growth objectives in
support of FOX. Devin’s coaching style can be described as
warm and radiant. Devin’s goals are to complement her natural
technical savvy with a strong foundation in nutrition, food
science, and wellness.
Devin holds a Bachelors of Science from Benedictine University.
Outside of coaching Devin is a young and enthusiastic professional
who is working to build a career in the food industry. She has been
an active member in the swimming community for several years. Her
extensive association with club swimming began at the age of six
when she joined the Elmhurst Swim Team. She competed there for
thirteen years before becoming a member of the Benedictine Swim
Team, where she swam until they cut the program in 2010. Today,
Devin swims on a USMS Team, where she competes at the local, state,
and national level.
Devin believes in the competitive nature of swimming as a
learning and development model. Swimming enables a different and
effective approach to developing traditional intangibles, positive
behavior, integrity, humanity, ethics, mentoring, culture, and
emotional maturity, which are vital for optimal performance.
Through innovation and hard work, Devin is determined to
motivate those around her to do their best. She is a passionate
coach who is dedicated to her work. Devin maintains high standards
for herself as well as those she works with, always striving to
provide the necessary support to help her peers and swimmers
succeed.
Cathy Wilken
9/10 assistant coach
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Coach Cathy Wilken swam from age 10-19 for a USS club, her high
school team, and eventually Bradley University. Coaching
since she was 17, she dealt with the cancelation of her
university’s swim team by dedicating herself to helping
others discover the benefits of swimming for themselves. A
firm believer that good things happen to people who work hard, she
has been a proud member of the FOX coaching staff since 2010.
Coach Cathy holds a BA in Spanish Education from Bradley University
and a MS in Educational Leadership from the University of St.
Francis. She has been teaching Spanish at Plainfield North
High School since 2006. In her free time, Coach Cathy enjoys
traveling and participating in road races, triathlons, and open
water swimming.
Kevin O'Keefe
9/10 assistant coach
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Antanas Senkevicius
11/12 assistant coach
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Tony started his swimming career at the age of 9 for the Farmstead
Flying Fish; he swam there through his high school years. He swam
for the Maverick Swim Club from 2003-2005 and for Naperville
Central High School 2003-2006, the last three years at the varsity
level. Tony junior-coached at Farmstead in 2003, age group coached
for the Lisle Sea Lions in 2009 and head coached Maplebrook II Blue
Dolphins in 2010. Tony has coached for the NCHS boys swim team from
2008-2012 as an assistant coach, and Maverick Swim Club from
2010-2012. He is A.S.E.P certified (American Sports Education
Program), which qualifies him to coach any sport at the IHSA level.
Tony Graduated from Illinois State University in 2010, with a
degree in History. In his time away from the pool, Tony
works for the University of Illinois at Chicago as the Aquatics
Director (so he is never really away from the pool)!
Tony has been coaching with Fox Valley Swim Team since
2012 and he is excited to contribute to the success of each and
every swimmer that he coaches!
Gretchen Parejko
Team Development coach
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Jim Parejko
assistant coach
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Chad Allen
coach, NVHS aquatics
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Chad was the lead 9-10 coach for 9 years, leading the 9-10's to the most points in the state for the last 3 of those years. He is now the Aquatics Director and the Head Boys Swim Coach for Neuqua Valley. The Boys Team has a state championship and two second place finishes. Chad helps coach the senior team in the summer and fills in during the year with all age groups.
Brandon King
Senior assistant coach
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Brandon is the Head Girls Swim and Dive Coach at Neuqua
Valley. He is also a Senior Coach with the Fox Valley Swim
Team.
Brandon has been a life-long swimmer coming from a family of
swim coaches. He swam for Hinsdale Central High School and
later for Hope College where he is a school record holder and
multiple time All-American. He graduated from Hope College
with a bachelor's degree in Physical
Education.
He just finished his second season coaching the girls high
school program at Neuqua where he led them to a third place finish
at the state meet. In his two years as head coach the team
has broken 5 school records, two top ten team finishes, and two
individual state championships. He was also awarded with
Swim Coach of the Year for the 2012 high school season. He is
very excited to be back with Fox this season!
Matthew Niemeier
coach, WV aquatics
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Katie Peterson
senior assistant coach
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Pat Piper
13/14 assistant coach
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Megan Tillotson
assistant coach
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Nick Arens
assistant coach
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Jackie Parent
13/14 assistant coach
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Jackie began swimming at age nine for the Huntington Barracudas.
While on the Barracudas she also began to winter swim for
Mavericks. Jackie coached the Barracudas for six years, while also
leading swim lessons at the pool. While coaching, Jackie started
swimming at Naperville North. After graduating Naperville North,
Jackie headed to the University of Dayton. Jackie is very excited
to work with the 11/12 and 13/14 age groups and is looking forward
to a great season!
Allison Szott
8 and under coach
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Coach Alli began swimming at the age of six for the Brookdale
Buccaneers park district team. Soon after, she joined FOX Valley
Swim Team where she swam until she was ten. She then swam for the
Naperville Riptides as well as Waubonsie Valley High School until
age 18. Coach Alli has been coaching for six years and is excited
to continue her coaching career with the FOX Valley Swim
Team. Outside of the pool, Coach Alli recently graduated from
the University of Iowa with a B.A. in Health and Human Physiology
and an emphasis in Health Promotion. She looks forward to the
upcoming season with the FOX Valley Swim Team and is excited to
help all her swimmers achieve their personal goals for the season!
Crystal Grissom
assistant coach
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Crystal is new to the coaching staff at Fox; however, she has been
in swimming field for over 10 years. She currently works at the
Rush Copley Healthplex teaching swim lessons and CPR. She is a
recent graduate of Eastern Illinois University and has a degree in
physical education. Crystal is currently substituting in
district 204 and loves seeing her swimmers in class. She has great
enthusiasm going into this year and is excited to work with the
swimmers. She is looking forward to an exciting season and what is
in store.
