Illinois State Swimming and Diving head coach Caitlin Hamilton announced Wednesday that Dallas O'Haver has been named the diving coach for the Redbirds. O'Haver replaces former diving coach Tori Lamp Wood.
"We are excited to welcome Dallas to our Redbird Family," Hamilton said. "He has a wealth of coaching experience in both club and collegiate diving, and has hit the ground running here in Normal. His excitement level for the Redbirds has shone through since our very first conversation. I know our divers are in great hands and our team will continue to thrive under his guidance."
"I would like to thank coach Hamilton, coach Sullivan and the ISU Athletics Department for this amazing opportunity to be a part of the Redbird Family," O'Haver said. "After speaking with Caitlin and Sean, I was excited to discover that we share similar, if not the same ideas, goals and passion for the program. I am looking forward to being a part of a community that strives to make an impact in and out of the pool. I'm also excited to continue ISU's success in the MVC while extending that success to national and international levels."
O'Haver joins the Redbird staff following a short stint as the Men's and Women's Diving Coach at Carthage College in 2021-2022.
In his one year with the Firebirds, O'Haver guided a pair of divers to CCIW championships. As a whole, Firebird divers posted five podium finishes at the CCIW conference meet last year. That group included men's diver Sam Wallace, who took home the one-meter diving title while setting conference meet records and pool records in both diving events.
The strong showing from O'Haver's men's diving team helped Carthage claim the 2022 CCIW Swimming and Diving team championship in 2022.
From 2018 to 2020, O'Haver worked as a volunteer coach at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, where he helped coach Horizon League Diving Championships finalists and champions. Prior joining the college coaching ranks, O'Haver led Racine William Horlick High School in 2017-2019. He also coached at the Walter Schroeder Aquatic Center, where he assisted in coaching multiple athletes through USA Junior Nationals and YMCA Nationals.
O'Haver dove collegiately at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he spent three semesters on Dean's List and WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll. O'Haver then transferred to University of Wisconsin-Parkside where he spent two semesters on the Dean's and Provost's list.
A native of Racine, Wis., O'Haver graduated in 2020 with two bachelor's degrees in history and secondary education.
