Coach Richard Miller - Head Coach
264-3417 or coachrichard+bellsouth.net

Raised in Corpus Christi, TX, Coach Richard didn't begin competitive swimming until he was in the 10th grade. Even though he got a late start, he responded to some great coaching and improved enough to have a couple of small colleges interested in him. He settled on William Jewel College (a small private school near Kansas City, Missouri). 

By the time he finished college, he held every freestyle school record over 100 yards. The highlight of his swimming career came when he qualified for the NAIA nationals in the 1650 free. His 22nd place finish doesn't sound so bad, until he points out there were only 23 swimmers in the race. He currently swims in Masters' swim meets and says "It's a blast!"

 He has worked with many local teams in various sports such as baseball, basketball and soccer over the past few years. But, as a swim coach he's finally getting to fulfill a desire he's had for over 30 years: to give a little back to the sport that has meant so much to him.

Coach Richard is married with two children and is the pastor of Shepherd's Heart Church in Boone. He was hired as the Intermediate (Waverunners) coach in May of 2005 and became Head Coach in May of 2006.

Coach Nicole Higgins - Assistant Coach
nicole+wataugaswimteam.com

Coach Nicole is a psychology major graduate from ASU where she currently teaches swim classes for the university. Coach Nicole is married, and works with children as a private swim instructor and youth worker at Perkinsville Baptist Church. She coaches WST's beginning group, the Bluegills and Sea Turtles, and joined the WST coaching staff in October 2005.

Coach Jodi Cash - Assistant Coach
jodi+wataugaswimteam.com

Coach Jodi has an extensive history with WST. She swam for WST from the time she was 7 years old through high school. For all four of her college years she swam for Washington & Lee University as a butterflyer and distance freestyler. Coach Jodi was the head coach of WST from 1992-1995 and 1996-1999. She also coached the Watauga High School women's team during the 2003-2004 season. She has been the director of the Wellness Center for the past 11 years, and loves running, swimming, and cycling. Her daughter, Kimberly, swims for WST and Coach Jodi is thrilled to discover that Kimberly loves swimming too! Coach Jodi joined the WST coaching staff in September 2006 as a substitute coach.

Nathan Fields - Assistant/Substitute Coach

I live in Ashe County with my beautiful wife Ashley and two cool kids named Noah and Owen.  When I'm not at the pool coaching I'm probably doing one of my other three jobs which include studio potter for my own business - Rattlesnake Mountain Pottery, Doe Ridge Pottery, and (my favorite) stay at home dad.  All of those are things that I love and would probably be doing them whether I was paid or not.
 
I joined the swim team at age 7 in Wisconsin mostly because that was the only sport going in the summer and I was new in town and wanted to meet some friends.  The first day I swallowed about 10 gallons of water, lost my goggles in the deep end, and could barely finish a full lap without stopping a half a dozen times on the lane line.  I went back the next day and then swam continuously for the next 16 years in both Wisconsin and south Florida.  During that time I fell in love with a sport that has taken me all over the country, introduced me to many life-long friends, and has taught me more life lessons than I can remember.  As a coach at Watauga my goal is to give back some of that experience, knowledge, and pure joy that I had growing up in the world of swimming. 
 
Some swimming stuff I did:
5 time Junior national qualifyer
Wisconsin junior olympic state champion
Wisconsin Div 2AA state champion
Florida Div 6AA state champion
NJCAA All-American
6 Zone Teams
USS Masters National Champion (sounds impressive but there were only 6 guys in my age group)
Teams I've swum for:
Verona Aquatic Club, Plantaion Swim Team, Broward Seahawks, Broward Community College, Ft. Lauderdale Swim Team

JD Dove - Assistant/Substitute Coach