Michael Bruno- Junior Olympic Coach

Michael Bruno comes to the MHDC from the city of Scranton, Pennsylvania.  After his middle school swim class teacher watched him jumping and practicing different flips during swim class, the coach suggested joining the high school swim/dive team when he became a freshman.  Shortly after joining, he fell in love with the sport and the wholesome community it garnered. Not having a local club made learning to dive more complicated, however, watching countless dive meets on YouTube and attending summer diving clubs in other states helped Michael to develop his skills and knowledge on and off the boards.  He eventually walked on to the Saint Bonaventure University diving team where he won the gold medal for 3m his senior year.  Now as a member of the coaching staff for the MHDC, Michael shares the lifelong lessons he has acquired from countless coaches, use his failures and successes to encourage athletes to hone their own skills, make lifelong friends and to have fun competing in one of the most complex sports in the world. 

 

Nathan Baeckeland- volunteer coach

Nathan was born and raised in Belgium. Following in the footsteps of older siblings, he started trampoline gymnastics at a very young age. After 13 years in gymnastics, he made the transition to diving. He trained in the Netherlands, and one year in the USA where he was a visiting student at the University of Minnesota. He competed nationally and internationally and represented Belgium at the 2020 Grand Prix in Rostock and the 2021 Fina world cup in Tokyo. He graduated with a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering at the University of Leuven, Belgium. After graduating and retiring from diving, he crossed the Atlantic again to work in Colorado.

 

Hanos Mahari - Junior Olympic Coach

Hanos grew up in St. Michael, Minnesota where he started diving at the age of 12 to learn how to do backflips and frontflips to celebrate for after he scored goals in soccer!  He found success in high school, where he stills hold records, and wanted to continue the sport in college.  He graduated in 2019 from St. Cloud State University where he was captain his senior year, won 1 meter at the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, as well as went to nationals and was named 2-time All-American Honorable Mention. After college he pursued a Master's at Minnesota State University Mankato and coached there from 2019-2023.  During his time there he set new records for the program by tripling the size of the diving program and being the first ever in program history to have 5 girls on 3 meter and 6 girls on 1 meter in the top 8 at finals at conference!  Hanos was names NSIC Diving Coach of the Year and was consistently able to qualify divers to the NCAA Division II Championship.  He recently moved to Colorado for a new job in sales and is so excited to join Mile High.  He says, "I have had such an amazing experience with diving that I just want to give back to everyone involved and help the kids grow as an athlete and an individual!"  

 

Delaney Schnell- Junior Olympic Coach

Delaney is from Tucson, Arizona where she began as a gymnast at the age of 4, then later found her passion for diving at the age of 10.  She competed at her first Junior nationals in 2011, winning her first national title in the 12-13 Platform event and qualifying to compete at the Jr Pan American Games in Medellin, Columbia.  She went on to represent USA Diving at various Jr World Championship and Jr Pan American events.  Later, Delaney competed on the senior international stage where she became a 4-time World Championship medalist, 2024 World Cup Gold medalist, and a 2-time Olympian (2020, 2024); winning a silver medal in the Women’s 10m Synchronized platform and finishing 5^th in the Women’s 10m Individual at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.  She earned a degree in Psychological Sciences and recently completed a Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology, both at the University of Arizona while having the honor of diving for the Arizona Wildcats.  During her time competing for the University of Arizona, she earned many academic recognitions and became an 11x All American, 2x All American Honorable Mention, 6x Pac-12 Champion, and 2023 NCAA Champion in the women’s platform.

We are elated to have Delaney as part of the Mile High family as she is a true ambassador for our sport and a genuine role model to your children. 

 

Casey Fellows- Junior Olympic Coach

Casey grew up diving with Mile High Dive Club since the age of nine and has always been a role model to those around him. After finishing out his Division I career at Columbia University diving for the Lions, he returned to Colorado for a job with the ProRodeo where he was able to provide new systems and integrate technology to improve databases and streamline rodeo registrations.  Casey’s true passion is video production, and he is involved with a handful of organizations where he hopes to be able to continue to bud as an entrepreneur in this field. He is enjoying traveling to Korea, learning Spanish, and building his client list. Casey has a big heart and loves seeing kids smile as they learn and overcome challenges and we know your child will adore working with him. 

 

Britni Fisher- Junior Olympic Coach

Britni was born and raised in Oregon where she dove for the Tualatin Hills Dive Club from the age of ten. She dove for the University of Illinois from 2008-2012, and has coached at THDC, Bryant University, and Ohio University. Britni has her Bachelors and Masters in Communication, specializing in Interpersonal and Instructional Communication. She is passionate about pouring into athletes as people, with a coaching philosophy that centers on character building, positive reinforcement, and individual growth. She recently moved to Colorado for a job in higher education, and is thrilled to join the team. In her free time, you can find Britni climbing, shooting pool, or playing board games. Britni's smile is contagious and she is wonderful with helping kids find their internal motivation. 

 

Julian Ziaggi- Junior Olympic Coach 

Julian grew up in Western New York and started diving at the age of 8. Quickly falling in love with the sport, he competed in USA Diving and AAU competitions. Julian continued diving through high school, traveling to a neighboring school district to find a team, and later for Hamilton College. After graduating college, Julian began working with children both as a teacher and a diving coach. He has coached club, high school, and summer league in New York and Maryland. After a slight detour through law school, he moved to Colorado and is thrilled to return to the pool deck. Julian enjoys helping athletes reach their goals both in diving and in life. Your kids will love his upbeat personality and positive attitude! 

 

 

Zyad Morsy- volunteer coach 

Zyad grew up in Egypt and competed for the Egyptian National Team for years including at the Junior World Championships in Ukraine 2021. Zyad came to the USA to study and currently dives at the University of Denver where he is a 2-time Summit League Champion and 2-time 2nd place finisher.  He has also been named Summit League Diver of the Year twice!  Zyad was an NCAA qualifier in 2022. For anyone that has seen him coach, it is obvious that he loves coaching diving and helping all kids reach their goals.  He loves that diving creates lifelong memories and teaches individuals how to overcome challenges so one can grow. 

 

Maddie Huitt- Junior Olympic Coach

Maddie grew up in Northern California and began diving at 10. She recently graduated from USC with a Bachelor’s in Health and Human Sciences and was a 3x NCAA qualifier and Olympic Trial Finalist in 2021 and Semifinalist in 2024. She started coaching in 2019 and has loved it ever since! Her favorite things to do outside of diving are hiking, skiing, and cooking.

 

 

 

Duncan Lester- Junior Olympic Coach

Duncan grew up in Boulder, Colorado (Colorado native, lets gooo!). He started diving at the age of 12, and joined MHDC in high school. Duncan dived Division 1 at the University of Minnesota, and was a 2020 NCAA qualifier. He is passionate about fashion, travel, running, and, of course, diving. Duncan is excited to help your kids progress in the sport and have fun doing it!

 

 

 

Abbie Erickson- Junior Olympic Coach

Abbie grew up a gymnast and transitioned to diving in 8th grade, where she fell in love with the sport, and to everyone’s surprise with 10-meter shortly after!  She was naive when Coach Jenn introduced her to her first college coach, not realizing that diving in college was even an option.  She started her college career at the University of Louisville and finished at Grand Canyon University. Abbie was very accomplished in the pool being a four-time zone qualifier, two-time WAC finalist on 3-meter, and two-time platform finalist winning the WAC Championship her senior year on 10m!  

Abbie says, “all the coaches I’ve had over the years, along with being part of a college team and the lessons I learned in and out of the pool, helped shape who I am today. Anyone who comes through Mile High has a special place. :)"

We are lucky to have Abbie on staff.  Her outgoing nature and her bubbly smile welcomes the kids every day.

 

Andrew Hull- Junior Olympic Coach

Andrew grew up in Denver, CO and dove for East High School. He was awarded Colorado diver of the year in 2012. He dove for Indiana University from 2012-2014 and for the University of Iowa from 2015-2016. In 2014 he placed 3rd at the NCAA Zone championship meet. That following summer, he placed 4th in the USA Diving senior national championships in 2013 and 2014 in the synchronized 10-meter event, and 12th in the individual 10-meter event in 2014. He completed his degree in Human Physiology in December of 2016 and was the assistant diving coach for the University of Iowa during the 2016-2017 NCAA season.  We are very fortunate to have Andrew work with our kids while he is attending Med School.  

 

Max Spiegel- Junior Olympic Coach

Max was born and raised in Denver, Colorado where he began diving at the age of 13. He went on to attend the University of Redlands where he was an Academic All-American and All-West Region for Division III. Since graduating college Max has taken up coaching high school diving but wants to contribute to the sport all year round. Max just recently graduated from the University of Denver's Sturm College of Law and is looking forward to starting his career as a lawyer!

 

 

 

Kyle Goodwin - Junior Olympic Coach

Kyle started out at MHDC as a little ripper when he was 10. He attended Regis Jesuit High School where he won state four years and became the Colorado state record holder. He went on to dive at the University of Missouri from 2015-2019. At Mizzou, he placed 3rd on the 1 meter during the 2019 SEC Championships as well as competed at NCAA Championships all four years and became an All American Honorable Mention on 1 meter, 3 meter, and platform.  He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts with an emphasis in Graphic Design as well as minors in Business and Art History. Since graduating in Kyle taken up advertising design, as well as coaching.  We are very lucky to have him with our staff even though Kyle is frequently out of state.  

 

Eden Evans- Junior Olympic Coach

Eden grew up in North Yorkshire and Cambridgeshire, England where she transitioned to diving after a short time in gymnastics. Eden dove for both Harrogate District Dive Club and Cambridge Dive Team during her time in the UK. When Eden moved to Colorado at the age of 14, she began diving with Mile High as a Junior Advanced and in four short years and a lot of focused hard work she received a scholarship to dive at Grand Canyon University. When Eden is not coaching, you can find her on the slopes snowboarding, hiking, painting and traveling. 

 

 

Ben Herdt- volunteer coach

Ben Herdt's career in diving has spanned 30 years, as a diver, coach, judge, program manager, and educational facilitator for coaches and judges.  As a high school diver, Ben was a NISCA All-American and a Junior National Qualifier (in 1m, 3m, and Platform diving events).  As a college diver, Ben was a 3-time Big Ten Champion at the University of Minnesota.  Ben has coached professionally in the NHSF, NCAA, Canada, USA, and Australia.  In Australia, he acted as Program Manager for Diving South Australia were he oversaw the 2013 Australian National Coach of the Year.  Ben has coached national finalists in the USA, Canada and Australia. Most recently, Ben has spent the last 8 years coaching at Laramie High School in Laramie Wyoming where he has coached 6 state champions and 3 NISCA All-Americans.  

 

 

Sal Strack- Stength and Conditioning Coach

Sal comes to us from San Diego where he worked as a Strength & Conditioning Coach for San Diego State University for six years.  He has specialized experience in the foundational movements and sport specific training unique to divers.  Sal’s education includes a Bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology and is one presentation away from earning his Master’s degree in Exercise Physiology.  He has made a significant impact on the strength levels, overall lifting technique, and recovery periods for our program.  The kids have seen major gains in overall muscular strength and a decrease in injury.  Sal has a strong focus geared towards working with the team on prehab movements as well as following through with them on rehabilitative exercises.  We are very fortunate to have Sal as a member of our team!