Rebecca Westfall returns to Warren Wilson to begin her head coaching tenure as with Men’s and Women’s Swimming. She brings 13 years of Division I, II, III and club coaching experience with her to Swannanoa, with some of her more recent coaching stints occurring at UNC Asheville, Indiana State, Pitt, Alabama and NC State.
Westfall’s first exposure to Warren Wilson came at the beginning of her career when she served as an assistant under head coach Andrew Pulsifer from 2012-14.
“Western North Carolina has always held a special place in the hearts of my family so I’m extremely excited to be back! Warren Wilson is such an exceptional and unique place and I can’t wait to help guide the Owls to a new era of excellence in the pool, classroom and greater community.”
Most recently, Westfall spent the 2021-22 season in Raleigh with NC State. The Pack won the 2022 Men’s ACC Championships team title, and both teams went on to tie program-best finishes at the NCAA Championships. The men secured a team trophy and podium spot with their fourth-place finish at the meet, and the women placed fifth in the nation, marking the top combined program finishes in the nation.
Westfall had a hand in coaching NC State to a total of 67 All-America citations this past season, and she was a member of the staff that coached the Wolfpack to the 100-yard backstroke national title sweeps at the 2022 NCAA Championships. In addition to the Pack's team win on the men's side at the ACC Championships, Westfall was a part of 11 event titles at the conference meet this past season.
While at Alabama, Westfall was tasked with a sprint/middle distance hybrid training group, and she was also responsible for all on-campus recruiting, social media promotions, equipment and team culture building. She helped lead the women's team to meteoric improvement during which the squad improved from 11th in the SEC and 34th in the NCAA to fourth in the league and fifth in the nation. Westfall also played a role in coaching Alabama to its first-ever women's relay national title in the 400-yard freestyle relay.
In her first year at Alabama, Westfall saw 24 student-athletes qualify for the NCAA Championships and 22 swimmers and divers earn a total of 57 All-America honors. Most recently in 2020-21, Westfall helped lead Alabama to 12 individual finals swims and eight top-16 relay finishes in addition to the relay title at NCAAs.
Prior to her time in Tuscaloosa, Westfall served as an assistant coach at Pittsburgh for two years. While with the Panthers, the team broke 29 school records and rose in the ranks of the ACC. Westfall spent the 2016-17 season as an assistant coach for the inaugural swimming and diving program at Indiana State.
She also coached two seasons at UNC Asheville, helping the Bulldogs post program-best finishes in the Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association Championships in both seasons. Prior to that, she was at Warren Wilson College in Swannona, N.C. for two years and served as interim head coach and aquatics director at Emory & Henry College in Emory, Va., in 2011-12.
Westfall began her full-time coaching career at Adams State College in Alamosa, Colo., serving as the director of swimming and aquatics for two years.
Westfall completed her collegiate swimming career at Texas A&M, where she was an eight-time All-American for the Aggies. She won a total of nine Big 12 event titles from 2003 to 2007, and she helped her team win its first Big 12 team title in 2007. Westfall spent time in College Station as a student assistant coach following her senior season. She graduated in 2008 with a Bachelor's degree in sport management and minors in history and business.
Westfall specializes in biomechanics and swimming technique, and she has published a series of articles on kinetic energy and movement through water.
She and her husband James have two children - a son, Wade, and a daughter, Claire.
