Coaching Staff
Head Coach
Mike Switalski, seventh season
switalmf@buffalostate.edu
Assistant Coaches
Mindy Wood, Brandon Costello(Diving)
Mike Switalski is in his seventh season as Buffalo State's head swimming and diving coach, as he strives to rebuild the program to the prominence the men's team enjoyed in the 1970's.
A former Division III All-America swimmer at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Switalski knows what it takes to succeed at the college level and is committed to mentor Bengal swimmers to enjoy similar successes. He has mentored the men’s team to multiple semesters of Academic All-America recognition, and the women's team earned the honor for the first time in the fall of 2003 and has established the team as a mainstay on the list. The recognition is awarded by the College Swim Coaches Association of America. He has also watched 12 school and more than 20 various pool and college records fall under his guidance during the past six seasons. In addition, he has coached several All-SUNYAC performers, including Kelly Stoklosa, who became the first Buffalo State female swimmer to win a SUNYAC title, capturing both the 100 and 200 breast stroke events at the 2006 championship meet.
His previous coaching experience is diverse, serving as an assistant at his alma mater, as well as coaching several club and high school teams. He has coached national level swimmers for USA Swimming (National Age Group Top-16, Junior National, Senior National and US Open). Most recently, he served as the coordinator and co-founder for the Buffalo Schools Swim Racers, an urban outreach project consisting of 230 swimmers.
Switalski has served as a national chair for the United States Swimming Outreach Committee. He has authored several published articles on competitive swimming in addition to giving multiple lectures on the sport, including at the USA Swimming National Convention. He was the only coach to represent USA Swimming in 1999 at the United States Olympic Academy, hosted by the US Olympic Committee. He has also attended several coaching clinics over the past decade in an attempt to stay on the cutting edge of training and coaching techniques.
He completed his bachelor's degree in physical education, with a minor in coaching at Wisconsin-Whitewater in 1994, and is currently working on his master's in student personnel administration at Buffalo State. Mike and his wife Kim reside in Buffalo with their son Nicholas and daughter Alexandra.
Assistant Coach Mindy Wood
Mindy enters her first season as the assistant swimming coach at Buffalo State, after completing her four-year swimming career for the Orange Black in 2006-07. As a student-athlete, she served as captain for three years and earned team MVP honors three times. As a freshman, she set school records in the 1,000 and 1,650 freestyle events. Throughout her career, she consistently contributed in the distance events, including placing 12th in the 1,650 and 16th in the 500 freestyles at SUNYACs in her senior season. A native of Middlesex, NY, Mindy earned her bachelor’s degree in childhood education.
Diving Coach Brandon Costello
Brandon joins the Bengals’ coaching staff this season, having earned a bachelor’s degree in life science from The Pennsylvania State University in 2007. A former diver at Hamburg High School, Costello competed for six years at the varsity level, where he was a two-time state competitor, including an eighth-place finish at States during his junior year. His previous coaching experience includes five seasons as diving coach at Wanakah Country Club and two years as assistant diving coach for the Buffalo Diving Club. A native of Hamburg, NY, Costello also works as a medical assistant at MedFirst Urgent Care and as a microbiologist with Bureau Veritas.
