Women's Swimming and Diving
Veteran swim coach Mike Ashmore returns to lead the Allan Hancock College women’s swimming program in its fifth year of existence. He is also the manager and head coach of the Santa Maria Swim Club and is a part-time physical education instructor at Hancock.
Ashmore led the Bulldogs to a program-best third-place finish at the 2017 Western State Conference Championship. A record six Bulldogs qualified for and competed in the 2017 CCCAA State Championships. Hancock won five individual conference titles and earned All-American status in seven events, including the first in a relay event.
During the 2016 season, three swimmers qualified for the CCCAA State Championship. Hancock earned All-American status in six individual events. Freshman Alexandria Kwong won three individual conference titles, set a conference record and helped the Bulldogs finish fourth in the conference standings.
During their inaugural season in 2014, the Bulldogs finished 25th out of nearly 50 teams at the CCCAA 2014 State Championships. Freshman Leanna Bramble won three individual Western State Conference titles and qualified for three events at the State Meet. In 2015, Bramble won two conference titles, qualified for the State Meet in three events and was a three-time All-American. Hancock finished 23rd out of nearly 60 teams in the CCCCAA State Championships.
He has been coaching swimming for more than 20 years beginning at the high school level in 1993. Since 1999, he has coached Junior National qualifiers, U.S. Open qualifiers, Senior National qualifiers, and a Junior National Champion in the 200 Individual Medley for the Santa Maria Swim Club. In 2010-11, Ashmore helped local swimmer Josh Prenot make the Junior Pan Pacific Games and Junior World Championships teams. In the 2016 Rio Olympics, Prenot won a silver media in the 200-meter breastroke, the first medal by an American male in the event in 12 years. Ashmore coached Prenot for nine years. Ashmore received a special medal from the United States Olympic Committee called the Order of Ikkos for his work with Prenot.
The Santa Maria Swim Club has had an athlete at Olympic Trials in 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016. Before coming to Santa Maria, Ashmore was the graduate assistant coach at Western Illinois University. While at there, he was responsible for the distance and 400 IM group. Ashmore assisted in guiding the Leathernecks to two men's Mid-Continent Conference titles and one Southern States Conference title. On the women's side he assisted Head Coach Jerry Champer in bringing home the first ever, Mid-Continent Conference title.
Ashmore also coached with the Fremont Area Swim Team, assisting in building the club from scratch to more than 300 members, while also coaching the San Ramon Royal Vista Summer Team. Prior to that Ashmore was the head coach of the Moreau Catholic High School where he led the Mariners, his alma mater, to three H.A.A.L Varsity Boy's titles, two H.A.A.L Varsity Girl's titles, and two Junior Varsity titles.
Ashmore swam competitively at Chabot College and Whitworth College where he was a five-time All-American. Ashmore earned his bachelor’s degree in sports medicine in 1995 and a master’s degree in exercise physiology from Western Illinois University in 1999. He is a Level 5 certified member of the American Swimming Coaches Association, placing him among the top three percent of coaches in the United States.
Coach Ashmore resides in Santa Maria and can be reached at mashmore@hancockcollege.edu.