Women's Swimming & Diving
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
- Email:
- tmenzel@scarletknights.com
- Phone:
- 848-445-0324
Tracy Menzel enters her fourth season with the Scarlet Knights as an assistant coach. A former NCAA champion as a student-athlete, Menzel previously served as an academic coach at the University of California, Berkeley for two years and as a swimming coach in multiple capacities.
Menzel helped Rutgers experience one of its best seasons in program history in 2016-17, as the Scarlet Knights sent five student-athletes to the NCAA Championships. Two swimmers, Vera Koprivova and Francesca Stoppa, represented RU in the pool at NCAA’s, where Koprivova set a school record in the 200 backstroke.
Menzel assisted with Rutgers’ success in the pool during the 2015-16 campaign, as four school swimming records were set. In her first collegiate season, Stoppa represented RU at the 2016 NCAA Championships, where she set the school record in the 200 butterfly with a time of 1:56.34. Rachel Stoddard set two school marks in both the 100 and 200 breaststroke events and the Scarlet Knights broke the program record in the 200 medley relay at the Big Ten Championships.
During her first season at Rutgers, Menzel helped the team adjust to its first season in the Big Ten Conference, regarded as one of the premier swimming & diving leagues in the country. Rutgers broke six school records during the 2014-15 season, finished 9-1 in dual action and sent two Scarlet Knights to the NCAA Championships.
Menzel began at UC Berkeley in 2012, holding the position of academic coach at the Athletic Study Center, as well as graduate manager to the university's women's swimming program. In her one year as graduate manager, Menzel handled various administrative tasks and assisted with team workouts and camps.
In her role with academics, Menzel worked primarily with Cal's swimming, cross country, softball and basketball teams. She also conducted research and taught and developed personalized strategies to promote academic and personal independence, specializing in supporting ESL and ADHD student-athletes.
In addition to her work at UC Berkeley, Menzel was named head coach of the Bentley Upper School (Calif.) men's and women's swimming teams in 2013, where she guided the program to eight school records and a women's league title.
Prior to arriving in California, Menzel was a member of a highly selective national service corps for three years from 2009-2012 in McAllen, Texas. With Teach for America, Menzel served as a teacher and team leader at McAllen High School, and was also the head swimming coach.
A three-time NCAA champion in the 100 breaststroke and 200 medley relay, Menzel graduated Magna Cum Laude from Kenyon College in 2009 with a Bachelor of Arts with Distinction in Women's and Gender Studies. As team captain, she led the Ladies to three NCAA Championships from 2007-2009 and earned 16 career All-America accolades. Menzel was named a finalist for the NCAA Woman of the Year award and earned the 2009 Doris B. Crozier Award for making significant contributions to the betterment of the student body.
Menzel earned her Master of Arts in Cultural Studies of Sport in Education from Cal in May of 2014.
