Director of Athletics Sheryl Sousa '90 announced on Monday that Mike Kotch will be the new head coach of the men's and women's swimming and diving teams. Kotch will succeed Jim Zotz, who was named an assistant athletic director at Brandeis last summer after serving as the head coach of the swimming and diving teams for 32 years.

The move puts Kotch at the helm of a rebuilding stage for the Brandeis aquatics teams, which were cut after the 2009-2010 season because of logistical issues that continued to arise after the closing of the Linsey Pool in the fall of 2008. However, the Justice reported in an April 5 article that the Linsey Pool will reopen by January 2012 and that the men's and women's swim teams will return in time for the 2012-2013 season.

Kotch has served as the head coach of the swim team and director of aquatics at Regis College since 2008, coaching 19 school-record holders in his three seasons with the Pride. Sousa said that she had worked with Kotch while the Judges were forced to practice and compete away from Brandeis due to the closing of the pool, and that her prior dealings with Kotch helped convince her that he was the right man for the job.

"Having worked with [Kotch] in the past, I am confident he will be an outstanding fit at Brandeis," Sousa said in a press release. "He understands the challenges and rewards of coaching Division III and working with student athletes who are among the best in the pool and in the classroom. Mike will be an asset to our program as he rebuilds the swimming and diving program."