Pitt-Johnstown Adds Men’s and Women’s Swimming
Pitt-Johnstown announced on Monday that it is adding men’s and women’s swimming as varsity sports.
The NCAA Division II program is also adding women’s wrestling, as it sits in one of the hotbeds of that sport in Pennsylvania. The programs will be added, “as early as fall 2025.”
The press release cites “many inquiries each year” about swimming from potential student-athletes as part of the reason for the addition. The school already has a coach in place, using the release to announce the hiring of Kile Zeller.
The school is a member of the 17-strong Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, comprised mostly of public schools in the Commonwealth. The PSAC includes 12 women’s programs and seven men’s before the addition of Pitt-Johnstown, including regular NCAA qualifier West Chester. The school will utilize newly renovated Zamias Aquatic Center.
“We are thrilled by this historic addition of Women’s Wrestling and Men’s and Women’s Swimming to our athletic programs, which already includes several championship teams in our conference,” university president Jem Spectar said in a press release. “We are highly confident that these new sports will elevate an already outstanding athletic program, making Pitt-Johnstown an even more compelling destination for prospective students, thereby helping to increase our in-state and out-of-state enrollments.”
Zeller swam at Florida State and has a degree in sociology from the University of Georgia. He was most recently the women’s swimming coach at St. Francis University.
“The addition of Swimming, a very popular sport, also leverages key strengths, including the recently renovated Zamias Aquatic Center and UPJ’s history for hosting high school swim meets on our campus,” Pitt-Johnstown Director of Athletics Abby Gearhart said. “The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference is one of the strongest conferences for swimming which makes it a perfect fit. We also look to grow the sport of swimming by adding various programs for the community to partake in.”
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