Coaches and Directors
Tom Beck has been involved in swimming in Nebraska for over 40 years. Tom started swimming for his neighborhood summer rec team Keystone at the age of 6, taught and coached by his sister Barb (now Barb Graeve). Tom started swimming year-round for the Metro Omaha Swim Team (MOST) under Joe Stocker, and later for the Omaha Westside Swim Club (OWSC) under coaches Cal Benz, Pat DiBaise, Bob Nedley, Peter Young, and Doug Krecklow. Tom attended Creighton Prep High School where he was a relay state champion, a state runner-up in the 100 butterfly, and a relay and individual (100 butterfly) high school All-American. Tom attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, graduating in 1989 with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. During his senior year at UNL, he was a member of Nebraska’s Big Eight championship swimming team.
Tom began coaching in 1986 as a summer rec coach at Keystone Pool, leading Keystone for the next 3 years and climbing to the top 3 in Omaha’s A Division. He began coaching USA Swimming with MOST in 1988 immediately after finishing his year with the UNL swim team. Tom coached for 7 years with MOST, the majority of time in the role of head age group/assistant senior coach. At MOST, Tom helped head coach Mike Hayhurst to develop the team into a perennial age group state champion, winning the state short course age group meet from 1990 through 1996, as well as the state long course meet in 1990 and 1991. Tom coached several swimmers at MOST to National Top 16 rankings, as well as LSC and Zone championships. Tom was named the Midwestern LSC Age Group Coach of the Year in 1990.
Tom began coaching the high school team at his alma mater Creighton Prep in the fall of 1990. His Creighton Prep teams were state runner-ups in 1993 and won the State Championship Meet from 1996 to 2000. During this time Coach Beck coached swimmers to 12 individual and 8 relay state titles. He was named Nebraska Boys High School Coach of the Year 4 out of the 5 years from 1996 to 2000. Tom left Prep before the 2001 season and assisted Millard West head coach Tracy Stauffer for that season. The West girls finished runner-ups at State. Tom returned in the Fall of 2001 to once again coach the Creighton Prep team, where he continues coaching today. He led them to State titles in 2002, and every year from 2007 to 2019 seasons, being named Coach of the Year again in 2007, '09, '10, '11, '13, '14 and '18. During the period 2002-2019, he coached Prep swimmers to 49 individual and 34 relay state titles. Omaha World Herald named Coach Tom the 2010 Nebraska High School Boys Coach of the Year, an all-sports honor. Christ the King Church Sports Club named him it's 2014 Athetic Achievement Award winner, for contributions to sports in the Omaha area.
Immediately before founding GOAL, Coach Beck was at the Millard Aquatic Club (MAC) in Omaha. Tom was the head age group/assistant senior coach from 1995 until 1998, when he became head coach, a position he held until the spring of 2001. While at MAC the club doubled in size, growing from 130 to 260 swimmers. Tom coached 3 swimmers to Senior National standards, 2 swimmers to Olympic Trials standards, and 1 swimmer to a Junior National championship. Coach Beck was one of three finalists for the Midwestern LSC Senior Coach of the Year in 2001.
Since starting GOAL in 2001, Coach Beck has helped the team to steadily climb the team rankings at the Midwestern Swimming Division 1 (D1) Championship Meets, then remain at or near the top. GOAL achieved it's first runner-up finish at D1's in the summer of 2008, and won it's first D1 championship in the summer of 2009. GOAL recaptured the title in the summer of 2019, after finishing as runner-up numerous times between 2009 and 2019. Coach Beck was named the Midwestern Senior Coach of the Year in 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2019. In 2012, GOAL had it's first Olympic Trials participants, when Ryan Miksch and Will Raynor both competed in Omaha at the CenturyLink Center. Later that summer, GOAL had it's first-ever multiple A finalists at Junior Nationals, when Jacob Molacek and Bob Glover both made the championship finals in Indianapolis. Coach Beck was honored by his peers by being selected as the Hank Enterline Central Section Region 8 2012 Long Course Coach of the Year. He was again awarded that honor in the summer of 2014.
Becky started coaching swimming right after she graduated from Cathedral High School in Omaha in 1985. Her first coaching job was as an age group swim coach for the US Navy in South Carolina. She coached there for 2 years. She then moved back to Omaha to attend Message Therapy School. Becky graduated as a Message Therapist in 1991. Becky then started to assist in coaching the Westgate Summer Rec Swim Club in 1994. When she started, Westgate was in the D League, with a squad of 17 swimmers. In her final season at Westgate, in 2006, she was co-Head Coach of a team of 90 swimmers in the B League. Becky was awarded parent volunteer of the year award at Westgate for her outstanding abilities in motivating and encouraging children. In the 2009 long course season Coach Becky was a finalist for the Midwestern Age Group Coach of the Year Award. Then Coach Becky was awarded the MWS Age Group Coach of the Year honor in both 2015 and 2016. Becky brings to GOAL a great understanding of the most effective techniques for the sport of swimming, as well as the ability to help kids to love the sport, enjoy coming to practice, and just getting to see her and say hello every day! She works with the dolphin group primarily, but has worked quite a bit with every group in GOAL. Coach Becky lives in Waterloo where she is married to Jim Yungbluth and has 2 daughters, Carey and Cass
Coach Pat DiBiase is one of the most decorated swim coaches in Nebraska history. He began coaching at GOAL in 2018, where he primarily works with the Senior-National group. Prior to beginning his coaching career, Pat was an All-American swimmer at Westside high school. He swam in college for Kansas and Nebraska. In 1976 he was the conference champion in the 100 breaststroke. Pat also qualified for the NCAA championships during his collegiate years.
Pat began his coaching career as the head coach for Westside high school and the Omaha Westside Swim Club (OWSC) in 1978. His boys and girls high school teams both won state championships that year.
The next three years he was an assistant coach for the University of Nebraska men’s team, which won 3 conference titles during his tenure at Nebraska.
After coaching masters swimming for several years, he came to Marian high school. As the head coach from 1998-2007, Pat lead the Crusaders to nine State Championships, including eight in a row, and one runner-up finish.during that time Marian swimmers and divers held 10 of the 12 state records. His 2004 Marian squad was the national champion dual meet team in the large school division.
He then took time off from coaching, only to return to the deck for the 2014-2015 season. Marian went on to win State by 1/2 point over Lincoln Southwest. He then retired due to recurring back issues.
The last three years Pat has coached the girls swimming team at Omaha Burke high school.
In 2019 Pat begins his third stint at Marian high school as an assistant swimming coach.
Pat has been inducted into the Marian Hall of Fame, the Metro Conference Hall of Fame, the Westside high school Hall of Fame, and the Nebraska high School Hall of Fame as a member of the dominant Dynasty award in 2010. He has been named the Nebraska Coaches association swimming coach of the year three times
In 2005 he was selected as the Omaha World Herald’s girls’ coach of the year.
He was a finalist for the National girls swimming coach of the year award in 2016.
Pat has been married to his wife, Sharon, for 38 years. They have a daughter, Libby, and a grandson Cruz.
Coach Paige started swimming at the age of 6 and joined GOAL’s team in 2011. She had a successful high school career, qualifying for both state and sectionals during that time. She graduated from Millard South in 2014 and continued her swimming career into college, first at UNO, and then later at Midland, where after almost 2 years away from the water she was the first girl to be recruited to their program when it started in 2017. She helped the Midland Warriors in it’s inaugural 2017-18 season as individual qualifier for the NAIA National Championships in the 200 IM, 100 Breaststroke, and 200 Breaststroke. She was Midland’s first ever conference medalist when she achieved a 3rd place finish in the 200 Breaststroke at the 2018 Mid-South Conference Championships. She was also awarded the “Champions of Character” award at the 2018 National Champions Banquet and was awarded Midland University’s swim team “Leadership Award”. She currently holds the 100 and 200 Breaststroke records at Midland University. She graduated from Midland with a B.A. in Exercise Science and in May of 2021 received her Masters of Science in Adult and Organizational Learning.
Alongside her successful career in the water, Paige has been coaching for the better part of the last decade. She joined GOAL’s coaching staff in 2013, assisting with mostly the Dolphin, Shark, and Senior groups. She was also an assistant coach for Midland’s team the last two years (2019-2021), during which time she helped Midland’s boys team win their Conference meet both years, place 4th at Nationals in 2020, and place 3rd at the Collegiate Swimming Championships in 2021 and helped the girls team place 2nd in their Conference meet both years and place 20th at Nationals in 2020, and place 4th at the Collegiate Swimming Championships. In the fall of 2021, Paige took over as the head coach of GOAL’s Shark group and she still assists with our Dolphin and Senior level groups as well. She has been an invaluable resource to our athletes, her knowledge and experience in the sport of swimming allowing her to be a great coach on deck in whichever group she’s working with. She creates a fun and challenging environment for our swimmers.
When not coaching, Paige can be found spending time with her boyfriend, Tallon, and pets Ava (dog) and Oliver (cat).
Coach Ben Butler was born in Lincoln and started swimming competitively at the age of 6 for his local rec pool. As a youngster he swam for the Great Plains Aquatic Club (GPAC). He swam for Lincoln East High School where he lettered 3 years.
Ben began his swim coaching career at the recreational level in Waverly, Nebraska while pursuing a teaching endorsement in Special Education.
He is in his 8thyear of teaching special education in the OPS district. Ben started his teaching career at Norris Middle School where he was the boy’s head swim team coach for 5 years. During that time he coached multiple city champions and many of his swimmers went on to compete at the high school level. While at Norris he also coached the boys JV soccer team for 4 years, and the boy’s JV basketball for one season. In the 2018–19 season he began his high school coaching career at Omaha Benson High School, where he just finished his 2nd year as head boy’s and girl’s varsity coach.
Sarah is the oldest of seven kids. She started swimming at the age of two and never stopped - throughout her childhood she swam for the Omaha Recreational Swim League. In high school she started teaching swim lessons for Barb Graeve Swim School where she taught for 6 years. Sarah can now be found dancing on deck to entertain and motivate the Penguin Groupers. Her goal is to teach others to love the sport while providing them with a strong foundation that can be built upon for the rest of their swimming careers. Sarah has nearly completed a bachelor's degree in political science at the University of Nebraska- Omaha.
Anna Capoun started swimming at the age of 10, and recently completed her swimming career after 12 years. She joined GOAL at the age of 12, swam in high school for Skutt Catholic, and finished her career at the University of Nebraska Omaha in 2020. She specialized in freestyle, all distances, along with sprint backstroke and butterfly. Her favorite events are the 50, 100, and 200 freestyle. Anna’s favorite parts of swimming were competing, seeing herself improve each day, and having a team to encourage and push her. She participated in several D1 Championships, Midwestern Sectionals meets, and the Omaha Cup for GOAL. Her high school career consisted of competing at the State meet all four years, with top 16 finishes in several events. Anna also competed at the Summit League Championships all four years of her college career, and the D1 CSCAA Nationals meet in 2019 and 2020.
Anna started coaching with the GOAL Swim School in the summer of 2016, and then began coaching GOAL practice groups in 2017. She loves coaching all ages because each group brings unique challenges and technique emphasis. Her favorite aspect of coaching is being able to see kids progress in their swimming skills and taking pride in their accomplishments.
Anna is studying Art Education at UNO and will be graduating in the Spring of 2021. She plans to coach for her high school team, Skutt Catholic, and hopes to eventually find a teaching job in the Omaha area.
Christina started swimming in Jesup, GA with her local summer team then joined Georgia Coastal Aquatic Team in Savannah, GA. She started coaching with her local summer team during high school and loved getting to travel to meets with a big swim family. During her senior year of high school, her 100 breaststroke ranked in the top 20 at the Georgia High School Association state meet. She currently holds all female swimming records for Wayne County High School. In college, she was part of the Georgia Tech Swim Club’s 2019 and 2021 national championships team. She graduated from Georgia Tech in 2021 with a neuroscience degree and is currently in physical therapy school at Creighton University. In her free time she enjoys hiking, spending time with her family and friends, and baking sweet treats.
She joined the GOAL coaching staff fall of 2021. She’s excited to share the joy of swimming with young athletes and help them reach their swimming goals.
Elizabeth began swimming summer league at the age of 6 for Rockbrook pool. After a few years she decided to make the jump to swimming year round and joined Swim Omaha at age 9. In about three years Elizabeth went from a summer league swimmer to breaking Midwestern records and qualifying for Sectionals in multiple events. Elizabeth later joined GOAL at the age of 14 and continued to improve, competing at National level meets such as Grand Prix, Junior Nationals, and U.S. Open. During her high school career at Westside, Elizabeth set the state record in the 100 backstroke and won five individual state titles. Elizabeth continued her athletic career as a Jayhawk at the University of Kansas, where she earned All Big 12 Athletic Team Honors (4x) and CSCAA Scholar All American Honors while also making the Dean’s list and Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor roll. As a senior, Elizabeth was a member of the KU school record breaking 200 and 400 medley relays.
Elizabeth began coaching with GOAL in 2020 after graduating from KU with her B.S. in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology. She primarily works with the Senior National and Shark groups and enjoys creating a fun and engaging environment to help young athletes improve in the water while also finding the same joy in the sport that she had when she was in their position. She intends to attend medical school.
Sharessa graduated from UNO with a Bachelors of Science in Exercise Science (2005) and a Masters of Science in Speech-Language Pathology (2011). She is married and has 5 children (Adrian 16, Alex 15, Aundrea 11, Axton 10, and Ainsley 5). When she’s not in the pool, on the pool deck, or in the stands (wrestling, football, swimming) cheering on her kiddos, she works full time as a Speech-Language Pathologist for Choice Rehabilitation at Douglas County Health Center.
Sharessa continues to have a passion for swimming, in 2011 she joined the United States Masters Swimming (USMS) swim team. In 2013, she was introduced to Open Water Swimming (OWS) and fell in love. She has completed several marathon swims including: the length of Lake McConaughy (undocumented) in 2017, Extreme North Dakota Watersports Endurance Test (END-WET) a 58km river swim (2015 and 2017), the length of Lake Memphregog 40.2km in 2018, the length of Lake Tahoe 34.2km in 2019, and several 5k and 10k swims.
Sharessa signed on to be an assistant coach with GOAL in 2020. She enjoys working on stroke technique, determination, and drive with swimmers of all ages. She is encouraged when she sees the swimmers progress in technique, speed and confidence throughout the season.
Colleen Deacon joined the GOAL coaching staff in September of 2012. Colleen had a very strong swimming career here in Omaha. Coach Colleen began her swimming career at 6 years old in Virginia. Her family moved to Omaha when she was 11 and she continued swimming for a local team. As a high school swimmer colleen competed for Millard West High school. She qualified for state and received all american honors all four years. Colleen continued her swimming career at UNO where she qualified for NCAA DII national championships for 3 years, before UNO changed divisions. She is the current UNO 100 Fly record holder as well as part of 2 relay records. Colleen completed an exercise science degree at UNO, and is currently in a post-grad education program at College of St. Mary's. Colleen coached for the summer rec team at Tiburon for 6 summers, where under her guidance the team numbers grew each year. Coach Colleen primarily serves as head coach of GOAL's Senior group, and also works with several other practice groups. Colleen lives with her husband Jamie in Omaha.
Alex had a long swimming career in Omaha, starting at the age of 4 for Westgate Recreational Swim Team. She started club swimming age of 7, trying several different clubs in the area for the next two years until she found her perfect match at GOAL. Alex was the first Green Group swimmer at GOAL and was the 14th member of GOAL. She is the first swimmer at GOAL to pass through all levels on the team. She swam High School for Marian and was a part of a state championship and 3 runner up championships. Alex taught swim lessons for Barb Graeve Swim School and the GOAL Swim School. She was head Penguins coach 9 years, starting at the young age of 16. Alex brings to GOAL a great love for the sport and for children in general, as well as an upbeat, positive personality. Alex graduated from the Creighton University Nursing program, and left her position at GOAL to become a full-time labor & delivery nurse, and now holds a position as a travel nurse to see the world!
