The 2024-25 season will be the sixth for Westmont head coach Jill Lin. She is the only coach the program has known.
In the program's first five years, Lin coached student athletes to 34 NAIA All-American titles and 39 of her swimmers earned All-Pacific Collegiate Swim Conference honors.Â
Westmont competed in the NAIA National Championships from 2020-2023, except for 2021 when the event was canceled due to COVID-19. The final two years, Lin led the fledgling program to top-10 national finishes - ninth in 2022 and eighth in 2023
From Westmont's first year in 2020, through 2023, Westmont was the highest scoring NAIA program at the PCSC Championships..
Lin's second season as head coach of Westmont's swim team came with challenges that were not originally in the forecast: the COVID-19 pandemic.Â
Due to COVID protocols, numerous changes shifted the format of the season, including the first two meets for the Warriors being "virtual" meets. In these meets, the Warriors competed against schools swimming in their own home pools, while comparing their times with one another.
As the year went on, protocols loosened to allow the club to compete in six in-person meets before taking part in the PCSC Championships. Highlights from the peculiar 2020-21 campaign included a strong showing at the conference championships, and most notably the club's first All-Americans in program history (Morgan Bienias, Kassandra Gregory, and Bridget Hoth).
Jones Lin completed her first season as head coach of the Westmont Women's Swimming team in 2019-20, helping the Warriors to a successful inaugural year as a program.
Westmont placed 10th at the Pacific Collegiate Swim Conference Championships this season, finishing first among NAIA schools. The PCSC includes schools from the NCAA Division I, II and III levels, as well as the NAIA.
The Warriors then went on to compete at the NAIA National Championships in Knoxville, Tennessee and tied for 22nd place nationally.
Additionally, Westmont swimming was honored by the Collegiate Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) as a Scholar All-American team for its success in the classroom. The Warriors earned the award in both the fall 2019 and spring 2020 semesters.
"I would love to see Westmont swimming have a strong presence at the NAIA championships and be competitive in the Pacific Collegiate Swim and Dive Conference (PCSC) with athletes scoring in the top-16," Jones Lin said. "Ultimately, I want to provide a competitive opportunity for prospective students who desire to swim in college and also attend a Christian school."
Westmont announced in August 2018 that it was adding an intercollegiate women's swimming program beginning with the 2019-20 season. Westmont Athletic Director Dave Odell announced the hiring of Jones Lin in October 2018 and she immediately began recruiting athletes for the team.
"The strong recommendation Jill received from UC Santa Barbara hall of fame coach Gregg Wilson was very influential," said Odell at the time of her hiring. "Our program's respect for Coach Wilson is remarkable. We also know that he understands Westmont, our culture and our faith commitment. After meeting Jill, it became immediately apparent why Coach was recommending her.
"We had several former college athletes on our committee and one of them made a poignant comment. She said, 'the other candidates are great, but I'd want to be coached by Jill.' That set her apart.
"Having gotten to know Jill over the last several months, I’ve been impressed with her ability to relate to a diverse group of people," Odell continued. "I think this will make her an incredible ambassador for our department and the mission of the college. We have an amazing group of coaches in our athletic program and Jill will embrace our team approach of collaboration and also bring a fresh perspective based on her own experiences."
Jones Lin brings 19 years of experience as a year-round competitive swimmer at the high school, club and collegiate level. An alumna of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Jones Lin competed as a NCAA Division I swimmer, served two years as team captain, was a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) finalist in the 200 Freestyle and a four-time school record holder.Â
For the two years prior to her hiring, Jones Lin coached as a senior assistant swim coach at both Orinda Aquatics in Moraga and Springbrook Swim Club in Lafayette.
"Jill has a strong pedigree in both swimming and Christian leadership," said Odell. "Her energy and enthusiasm is palpable. She also has a strong understanding of athletics as part of the full liberal arts experience; placing emphasis on the priority of being a student."
"I couldn’t be more excited to join the Westmont team and work alongside the other incredible coaches and faculty," said Jones Lin when she was hired. "The Santa Barbara community is incredibly welcoming and Westmont is no different. I love that I get to combine my passion for swimming with mentoring student-athletes as they prepare for life after college. The Westmont athletic community is very competitive in the NAIA and the Westmont student-athletes that I have encountered are motivated and driven to be the best in their conference.
"My goal for my athletes is for them to have a positive college swimming experience, that over the course of their collegiate swimming career they will grow and develop not only as swimmers, but as strong and faithful leaders who are passionate about making a difference."
Jones Lin lives in Santa Barbara with her husband Curtis Lin and their son Caden.
