By Brian Hoffman
Roanoke College Director of Athletics Scott Allison has hired Brandon Ress to be the next head coach of the Maroon swim program. Ress will be the program’s second head coach since it returned to the Salem campus five years ago.
“We’re so pleased that Brandon Ress has accepted our offer to lead the student-athletes within our men’s and women’s swim teams”, said Allison. “As Coach Thacker’s Associate, Brandon played an integral part in the ascent of our program. He’s more than ready.”
Coach Ress came to Roanoke in August of 2017 as the assistant under head coach Scott Thacker. The two would work hand in hand to build the Maroons into an ODAC contender from the start. At the end of that first season, the Maroons would finish in the top five at the conference championships (men 4th and women 5th). Over the next four seasons, Roanoke would enjoy sustained success, culminating with a Men’s ODAC Swim Championship in 2021. In five ODAC Championships the program earned one title, five runners-up, and a third-place team finish. During his tenure, Ress worked in all facets of the swim program including day to day operations, recruiting, team academics and his work with the Maroon distance swimmers.
“I am very humbled and excited to be given this opportunity to lead the Roanoke College Swim program. As an assistant, I have had the pleasure of seeing the program grow each year since its inception in 2017. I am honored to continue to push the program forward and continue to build upon its culture and legacy as the head. I believe this team is comprised of a special group of student-athletes who will continue to push each other and myself to new heights.”
Prior to coming to Salem, Ress had after a standout career at Towson University where he was a four-year member of the team and served as team captain during his senior season. He was named to the 2017 All-Colonial Athletic Association Team as part of the Tigers’ 400 & 800 Freestyle Relay teams. In addition to the pool, Ress was a member of the CAA All-Academic Team and a seven-time Dean’s List honoree, while majoring in exercise science and graduating with honors in May of 2017.