Arcadia University Director of Athletics Brian Granata announced that Nate Parsley has been selected as the next head coach of the Knights’ men’s and women’s swimming teams. He is the eighth head coach in program history.
“On behalf of the search committee, we are thrilled to welcome Nate to Arcadia and believe he will do an excellent job leading our men’s and women’s swimming programs,” Granata said. “Nate is an organized, motivated, hard-working individual with a strong coaching pedigree. We are confident in his ability to develop our student-athletes in and out of the pool. Nate has a great understanding of higher education and a background rooted in Division III that will serve him well in his role as head coach at Arcadia.
Parsley began his collegiate coaching career at his alma mater and perennial NCAA Division III power Rowan University as an assistant coach from 2013-15, where he helped guide the Profs’ men’s team to a dual meet record of 20-2 and a 22nd-place finish at the 2015 NCAA National Championships. He coached a pair of national qualifiers that season, including the national champion in the 50 and 100 freestyle events. Rowan also recorded a pair of runner-up finishes at the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Championships, and a pair of top-three finishes at the Metropolitan Championships.
The women’s program also enjoyed a great deal of success during Parsley’s tenure, posting a dual meet record of 17-6 and a pair of top-four finishes at the NJAC Championships, placing second in 2014 and fourth in 2015. The Profs finished sixth at the 2014 Metropolitan Championships and improved to a fifth-place finish in 2015.
In terms of individual success, the men’s program totaled 40 All-NJAC performances from 2013-15, which included four NCAA participants that totaled three All-America performances. The women’s team produced 30 All-NJAC performances during those two years. Five program records were also set, three of which were in the distance events.
Parsley was involved in all aspects of the administration of Rowan’s programs, including recruiting, developing training regimens, and setting meet lineups. He was directly responsible for the distance events for the men’s and women’s programs. He further expanded his role as an athletic administrator the following year as an intern in Rowan’s athletic department while working towards the completion of his master’s degree, which allowed him to become immersed in NCAA compliance, academic support services, and event management among other duties.
“I am thrilled and excited to being named the new head men’s and women’s swimming coach at Arcadia,” said Parsley. “I want to thank athletic director Brian Granata and the members of the search committee for this tremendous opportunity. I will work tirelessly to establish Arcadia as the top program in the Middle Atlantic Conference, and usher both teams to the national stage. I look forward to motivating our student-athletes to strive for excellence in all facets of their Arcadia experience, maximizing their potential in the classroom, in the community, and in the pool.”
Parsley most recently served as a full-time assistant softball coach at Division I Radford University in 2017, where he was responsible for the Highlanders’ national recruiting efforts and served as the team’s travel coordinator. He also served as a softball assistant while at Rowan, in addition to holding swimming and softball coaching positions with various club and high school teams.
Parsley completed his bachelor’s degree in education at Rowan in December 2012 before earning his master’s degree in higher education administration from Rowan in May 2016. He competed in the backstroke, distance and individual medley events for the Profs, and earned Philadelphia Inquirer Academic All-Area and NJAC All-Academic honors in recognition of his combined academic and athletic efforts.
Press Release courtesy of Arcadia Athletics.