Kevin Hennessy

Kevin Hennessy (’10) was promoted to Wingate University associate head coach for men’s swimming and aquatics during the summer of 2020. The 2021-22 season marks his sixth year on the Bulldog staff. Hennessy leads Wingate’s distance specialists and retains assistant coaching responsibilities with the women’s team.

In 2021, Hennessy helped the Wingate women finish sixth and the Bulldog men place seventh at NCAAs. Eighteen student-athletes qualified for the NCAA championships. Both teams finished second in the 2021 Bluegrass Mountain Conference meet.

In the summer of 2021, a program-best 27 Wingate swimming student-athletes were named Scholar All-Americans by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA). Both WU swimming squads were named Scholar All-America teams by the same organization.

In 2020, the Bulldogs had 26 student-athletes post 68 CSCAA All-American swims (52 first team honors, 16 honorable mentions). Both WUSWIM teams earned silver medals in the 2020 Bluegrass Mountain Conference meet. Twenty-five student-athletes were named CSCAA Scholar All-Americans.

Hennessy is responsible for Wingate’s recruitment efforts on the men’s side. In addition to his WU coaching duties, Hennessy leads the AquaDog youth team. He provides coordination assistance with pool rentals, pool memberships and aquatics in general.

In 2019, Wingate had 16 first team All-American swims and 35 honorable mention All-American swims at the NCAA meet in Indianapolis. Both Bulldog teams finished second in the Bluegrass Mountain Conference (BMC) championship meet in Charlotte.

In 2018, Wingate was the co-host for the NCAA Division II national championship meet at the Greensboro Aquatic Center. The Bulldogs defended their national championship in the women’s 800 Freestyle Relay at the 2018 NCAA meet. Earlier, both Wingate teams finished second in the 20th annual BMC championship meet in Charlotte.

In 2017, the Wingate women finished third at the NCAA national meet. The Bulldog men jumped 10 places on the team leader board from their 2016 appearance, scoring 198 points to finish sixth at the 2017 NCAA event. Both Wingate teams claimed second place at the BMC meet in Charlotte.

Hennessy returned to his alma mater after spending six years with the Coast Guard Blue Dolphins in Virginia. During his time at Wingate, Hennessy was a four-year letter winner for the Bulldogs and head coach Kirk Sanocki. He was an All-Bluegrass Mountain Conference (BMC) swimmer and a Scholar All-American, as named by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA). Hennessy earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental biology with a psychology minor during his time at Wingate.

Hennessy began coaching with the Coast Guard Blue Dolphins (CGBD) on a part-time basis in 2008 before his elevation to full-time status in 2010. In his time with the CGBD, he served as assistant head age-group coach, head age-group coach and most recently as the head senior coach from 2013 until 2016.

During his time with the CGBD, Hennessy’s swimmers consistently placed at the top of their region and state meets. His swimmers have set numerous team records and Virginia Swimming records. They have gone on to qualify for Sectionals and Junior Nationals. Hennessy also assisted with the development and training of the CGBD Olympic Trials qualifiers in 2012 and 2016. He also has experience coaching summer league teams and high school teams.