TOLEDO, OH - University of Toledo women's swimming and diving coach Lars Jorgensen resigned today to take an assistant coaching position with the men's program at his alma mater, the University of Tennessee. After serving as the Rockets' coach for the past six years, Jorgensen will be reunited with his former head coach John Trembley, who has guided the Volunteers to 15 Top-10 NCAA finishes in the last 22 seasons.

     "Coaching at Toledo has been the best experience of my life and I'm going miss the people here very much," said Jorgensen, who swam and was a graduate assistant coach at Tennessee in the early 1990s. "I believe the team has a extremely bright future, and I want to thank Mike O'Brien, the administration and all of the student-athletes that played a part in our success. Returning to my alma mater and working with my former coach is exciting, and it's going to be great to be a part of a very successful program."

     A two-time Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year, Jorgensen led UT to its first-ever conference title in 2009-10, posted a 45-19-1 (.700) dual-meet record in his career and guided his swimmers to 20 individual conference titles. In addition, 24 student-athletes garnered All-MAC honors, including 14 first-team members, and 19 received Academic All-MAC recognition during Jorgensen's reign.

     "We wish Lars all the best as he returns to a place where he can be closer to his family and has very fond memories," Toledo Athletic Director Mike O'Brien said. "Lars is one of the best young coaches in the country, and he has done a tremendous job elevating our swimming and diving program to being the best in the MAC and having the ability to compete on a national level. His teams certainly represented our University well both in and out of the pool, and we are sorry to see him leave."

     Prior to Jorgensen's arrival, UT had never finished higher than fourth at the MAC Championships and had placed eighth out of nine teams the season before his hiring. Jorgensen's squad finished sixth in his first year (2005) and improved in each of the following three seasons, including a runner-up effort at the conference meet in 2008.

     After recording a third-place showing at the 2009 MAC Championships, the Rockets broke through with a dominant performance at the 2010 meet. Toledo led wire-to-wire and set eight school records en route to the title with Jacy Dyer being named the MAC's Co-Swimmer of the Year.

     Other highlights from Jorgensen's tenure include helping Kylie Gamelier become the first UT women's swimmer to qualify for the NCAA Championships, a feat she accomplished in 2008. She participated in the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials, and along with Dyer also competed at the 2009 World Championship Trials in Indianapolis last July.

     O'Brien also stated that a national search for Jorgensen's replacement will begin immediately.

Lars Jorgensen's Record at Toledo

Season	Dual Record	MAC Finish	MAC Titles
2004-05	7-2	6th	2
2005-06	6-4-1	5th	2
2006-07	4-4	4th	2
2007-08	11-2	2nd	8
2008-09	6-5	3rd	2
2009-10	11-2	1st	8
Total	45-19-1		24