Jason Smith - Head Coach
Jason has been coaching club and high school swimming since the late 1990s and brings decades of experience to the deck. As an athlete, he achieved national-level success specializing in backstroke, breaststroke, and IM events.
His swimming accomplishments include winning USA Junior Nationals in the 200 backstroke, placing top 16 at U.S. Nationals in both backstroke events, and being selected to multiple U.S. Olympic Developmental Camps at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. Jason was also a four-time Oregon High School state record holder in the 100 backstroke and a back-to-back state champion in both the 100 backstroke and 100 breaststroke during his junior and senior seasons.
Jason began his collegiate career at the University of Florida before transferring to the University of Minnesota, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Sport Management. Throughout his development as both an athlete and coach, he has been trained and mentored by some of the world’s top swim coaches.
Jason has coached numerous athletes to elite levels of success, including National Age Group Top 10 performances, qualifications for NCSA Championships and USA Junior Nationals, High School All-American honors, and multiple State and Central Zone championships, including state record holders. His coaching honors include being named MSHSL 5AA Section Coach of the Year, coaching swimmers selected to the USA Swimming Central Zone Select Camp, and serving as a four-time Lead Coach for the Minnesota Zone Team.
Jason’s coaching philosophy centers on creating meaningful, positive experiences while developing both athletic performance and life skills. He emphasizes kicking, technique, and IM training to help athletes become well-rounded competitors. Jason firmly believes that reaching one’s full potential requires mastery of both the mental and physical aspects of the sport.
We’re thrilled to have Jason as part of our team. Go WOLF! 🐺
Contact Coach Jason at:[email protected] or 952-855-2120.
Josh Withers - Alpha Leaders - Head Age Group Coach
Coach Josh has been an active swimmer since 2010 and has been coaching since 2019. As a coach he has served as Assistant for the Edina Country Club, Head Coach for Life Time Swim, and Head Coach for Neptune Aquatics. Josh is excited to bring his experience and passion for coaching to Great Wolf.
Josh has coached multiple swimmers to podium finishes at State, including first place. He has coached swimmers to Zone times including podium finishes. He’s also coached swimmers to Speedo Futures and Speedo Sectionals. Josh enjoys working with swimmers of all skill sets to help them improve.
Josh’s coaching philosophy is to prioritize improving the technique of starts, turns, strokes, and finishes of each athlete while improving their aerobic and anaerobic abilities. Most importantly he strives to provide a fun, positive, and encouraging environment that makes the athletes feel supported and feel motivated.
Contact Coach Josh at: [email protected] or 952-923-6522
Katie Smith - Hunters - Lead Coach & Team Admin
Contact Coach Katie at [email protected] or 612-644-0904.
John Thomas - Hunters/Trackers/Pups - Lead Coach
Coach John began swimming at St. Paul Highland Park High School. In the short time there he qualified and placed in the state meet. Upon graduation he attended GustavusAdolphusCollege, where he practiced in one of the last 20 yard pool in the state (with no goggles because they had not been invented). In his junior year he became the MIAC champion in the 50 free.
Graduating with a degree in health and physical education, he went on to teach and coach at Burnsville High School and work with the local AAU team. During his first season, one of his high school boys finaled in the 50 and 100 free at the state meet. A few years later one of the boys on his club team became the first high school swimmer to break 2 minutes in the 200 IM. Deciding it was time to move on, he went to the Mounds View Swim Club where he coached Dave Bentz (Coach Dave). After a couple of years, John retired from swimming to pursue other endeavors and raise a family. A short time later he got bit by the coaching bug, getting back into it at the Bloomington Aquatic Club with Coach Dave. While there he returned to high school coaching with Edina Girls team. During his 5 year tenure, they won the state meet 3 times, he was named coach of the year, one of his swimmer won 4 consecutive 100 butterfly championships, and another broke the national high school record in the 100 breast. After Bloomington he moved to the Marauder Aquatic Club where he helped that team win a state age group championship. (Shortly after his departure one of his boys broke the high school butterfly record that still stands). In 2010 John became the summer program director and head swimming coach of the University Club in St. Paul. Shortly after, he and Dave, once again connected, becoming a coach on the Great Wolf Swim Team. John is now back at Great Wolf after a couple of years and we are so happy to have him back!
John’s looking forward to taking all the swimmers to a place they never thought possible. It's all about finding a way no one ever imagined. He builds great confidence in his swimmers through insistence on proper technique and race strategy.
Brynn Mills - Trackers/Pups - Assistant Coach
Sarah Laman - Trackers/Pups - Assistant Coach
Tracy Gorzek - Assistant Coach
Coach Tracy grew up in the Twin Cities swimming for the Mounds View Swim Club and swam at Mounds View High School. She attended college at UW-Green Bay and competed on the Nordic ski team there. After college, Tracy moved to Wausau, WI where she coached both swimming and Nordic skiing for the Wausau School District. In addition, she coached age group swimmers with the WYNS swim club in Wausau. Tracy resides in the NW metro with her husband and three swimmers.
Contact Coach Tracy at: 715-302-5689.
Casey Mork - Dryland Coach
After graduating high school, she continued her passion for running as a member of the cross-country and track and field teams for Minnesota State University Mankato. She qualified for the MN Army Marathon Team and ultimately qualified for the All Guard Marathon Team, consisting of soldiers from the Army and Air force. They were given the opportunity to compete in races all over the US.
Casey graduated college with a degree in Early Childhood Education. Before having her own children, she coached Middle School track and field for two years at Becker and two years at Big Lake. Currently, she teaches preschool outdoors for the Big Lake School district.
Dave Bentz - Team Founder
Even though most know Coach Dave as a swimming coach, he began his relationship with the swimming world in the water. Swimming in high school, Dave found success in the 200 and 500 yard freestyle that took him to the University of Minnesota. Before graduating with a degree in physical education and child psychology, Dave had already started making his mark as a coach. He not only helped start the ABC Aquatic Club (Anoka, Blaine, and Coon Rapids), Dave also became manager and assistant coach at the Olympic Training Center (OTC). While working at the OTC, he gained invaluable experience working with multiple Olympians and Olympic coaches – notably George Haines, a seven-time coach of the Olympic team.
Dave took his knowledge of swimming and became head coach of the Bloomington Aquatic Club, and within his six-years turned the Bloomington Aquatic Club around from a struggling club to a championship program. Next, Dave was part of one of the first ever coach owned clubs in Minnesota: Marauder Aquatic Club, winning age group titles, sending athletes to junior nationals, senior nationals, and the Olympic trials. With that level of success, it’s no surprise that Dave was recruited to coach at the newly opened University of Minnesota Natatorium with the Gopher Swim Club; his success continued with him sending swimmers to senior nationals, and taking one athlete from the state to the world level.
After an attempted retirement from the swimming world, the siren song of swimming brought Dave back to once again coach at Northern Lights Aquatics (formerly ABC Aquatic). Dave went on to found our Great Wolf Swim Team in 2004 and once again found himself master of rapid success, coaching athletes to achieve: state records, national records, Olympic trial qualifiers, NCAA individual titles, and a 13-year old NCAA record.
We are honored to have David Bentz as our founder, and testimony of our mission to help all swimmers maximize their potential.
Contact Coach Dave at: [email protected] or 612-328-2463.
