CFYN Tigersharks

Coaching Staff

2008-2009 Coaching Assignments:

• Coming Soon

HEAD COACH

Dale Craddock – Coach Dale began swimming at the age of 9 for the Cuyahoga Falls YMCA and Waterworks Swim Club.  Dale swam for Cuy Falls High School and he was a member of a State qualifying relay for 3 years.  He was the team co-captain his Senior year and was District Butterfly Champion.  He continued his swimming while attending Kent State University.  During his Junior year at KSU, Dale started his coaching career at Cuyahoga Falls YMCA.  After graduation from KSU, he taught Health and coached the Boys swim team at Cuyahoga Falls High School. His team was High School District Champions in 1977. The next 2 years he taught Physical Education and coached the boys and girls team at Western Reserve High School in Warren, Ohio.  After being out of swimming for a number of years he returned to the Falls YMCA as Head Coach in 1992.  He has led the Tigersharks to undefeated dual meet seasons in 2004 and 2005, many Divisional Championships and NEO League Championships in 2001, 2004, 2005, and 2008.  Dale lives in Cuyahoga Falls with his wife Kathy and 3 daughters Devon, Erin, and Colleen.

ASSISTANT COACHES (Listed Alphabetically)

Margret Brown - My love of swimming started as a child in Iowa. Although I have never swam competitively (aside from some Masters meets), I have always wanted to teach swimming and be in the water. I majored in International Political Science with a concentration in German studies at the University of Akron. I have coached 8 and unders for the Western Reserve Sea Riders (4 years) and for Tallmadge MACA for 1 summer. The YMCA has been my current pool for the past year and a half where I have taught lessons as well as supervised the aquatics program. My daughter, Natalie, also loves to swim and has been asking to "join mommy's practices" so I am sure she will be a future Tiger Shark!!!

Lari Gabriel– Lari's love for swimming began at the age of eight when she joined the Cuyahoga Falls YMCA swim team and Waterworks AAU swim team.  She remembers having Mark Schubert, a former Olympic swim coach and current head of USA swimming, as her coach at the Y when she was thirteen!  At CFHS she held records in the freestyle and butterfly and was named Swim Captain, Most Valuable, and received the coveted Coach's Award during her senior year.  At BGSU she swam for three years as a distance freestyler, was a school record holder and was champion in the Midwest Meet in the 1650 yd. freestyle. Most of all she remembers the best friends she made through swimming and the fun she had working hard! Having earned a BS Degree in elementary education and learning/behavior disorders, Lari taught for nine years at Bolich Jr High.  During that time she coached the CFHS girls' team as well as the Waterworks swim team for 3 years. She retired from coaching when she married and retired from teaching when she had her first son.   For 13 years she was a full time mother and volunteer while she raised her family of four sons. Her four sons also loved to swim at an early age - starting when they were seven with CFYN.  Lari has coached CFYN for eight years and continues to do so.  She has influenced the Y swimmers in earning Divisional and League Championships.  During the past five summers she has enjoyed being the head coach at Silver Lake Country Club.  The Silver Lake team has won league championships three out of four seasons.  Her coaching career totals thirteen years' experience. Currently, Lari is employed at Stow's Lakeview Intermediate School as an Intervention Specialist.  She and her husband, Joe, reside in Stow.  Today their four sons -  JT (17) swims for Western Reserve Academy, Logan (15) will swim for Stow High School, and twins Parker and Mason (11) swim for the Y – continue to swim competitively.  Lari looks forward to attending many swim meets this winter!

Mike McDonald - Mike is beginning his sixth year at Cuyahoga Falls High School (Co-Head Coach, Head Men’s Coach) and his first working with CFYN Swimmers. Mike was raised in Cuyahoga Falls and graduated from St Vincent-St Mary High School in 1997. His first experience with swimming came in 1992 when his father gave him a choice, swimming or soccer. He chose swimming and was intrigued by the parallels it had with life. He played Soccer, ran Track and Cross Country and swam in high school. He graduated from Mount Union College 2001 with a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education. While at Mount Union he was a part of the OAC Championship Team and was a team captain in 2000-2001. He coached the WaterWorks Swim Club for one year and had swimmers talk him into coaching the high school six years ago. He lives with his beautiful wife of three years, Deidre, and two cats; Anastasia and Bartok and works as a Sixth Grade Teacher at St. Sebastian School. His interests include Swimming, Soccer, Running, Watching College Football (Go Bucks), Watching Basketball, Reading, Spending time with wife, family and friends, Movies, and sleeping!!! Remember to live life and stay motivated. A quote to live by: "Some men see things as they are and say why, I dream of things that never were and say WHY NOT!"-Robert Kennedy

Peter Nauman - Peter began swimming at age 7 as an age group swimmer, where he was quite accomplished in various events at the state and national level, earning a top 16 ranking in the 400 IM.  Peter swam in High School qualifying for the Illinois High School State Championship in various events as well as YMCA Nationals.  During High School he placed second 3 times at the Illinois state meet losing to two swimmers who later went on to set World and American records.  After High School he attended Bradley University, a Division I school, on a swimming scholarship.   Peter represented Bradley at the NCAA Mid-West Regional Championship where he made the finals in several events.   During college he also served as head age group coach for a variety of summer swim programs.  During his junior and senior years at Bradley University, Peter was hired by the Peoria Park District to be the swim coach for the 150 – 200 members USA Swimming Program.  Peter took the program from a tenth place ranking to a second place finish at the Illinois State Swimming Meet. He also coached high school swimming at Metamora High School in Illinois. After graduating from college Peter took a break from swimming to pursue his professional career.  In 1999 he rejoined the swimming community as a swimmer-coach of the Cuyahoga Falls Masters swim group.  Peter was asked to serve on the Board of Directors for Ohio Masters Swimming, which he did for 2 years, bringing the National Long Course Championship to Cleveland.  Since 2001, he has been the 9 & 10 Coach for the Cuyahoga Falls YMCA.  Peter resides in Cuyahoga Falls with his wife Diane and two daughters, Amanda and Valerie, both of who are Tigersharks.

Patti Vantrease-Patti has resided in Stow since moving from Lakewood, Ohio in 1977.  She began swimming at age 6 with the Lakewood Swim Team.  Upon moving to Stow at age 10, she continued swimming for various teams including the YMCA Tallmadge Sea Devils, Hudson Explorers, Kent Sea Riders, and Maplewood Swim Team.  As a high school student, Patti not only swam competitively, she also earned her WSI and began life guarding and teaching swimming lessons at Redwood Swim and Tennis and Hudson Country Club.  During her time at Redwood, Patti took her first step into coaching.  She continued coaching summer teams at Redwood and Hudson Country Club until she began working at Dover Lake Park her junior and senior year in high school.  Throughout her high school years Patti continued swimming for the Kent Sea Rider’s YMCA team.  Patti qualified for YMCA Regional’s and YMCA Nationals in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida in the breast stroke and medley relay (breast stroke) both in her junior and senior year.  She continued competitive swimming and life guarding at Bowling Green State University while earning her degree in Sports Management with an emphasis as a Fitness Specialist.  Upon graduation from BGSU, she continued teaching lessons at Kent State University while earning her master’s degree in Exercise Physiology.  She has been teaching swimming lesson for the past nine years at Leisure Time in Stow.  Patti is currently employed by Summa Health Systems at the Center of Excellence as an exercise physiologist in cardiac rehabilitation.  She and her husband Wade reside in Stow and have three children, Cody, Kelly and Kyle who are all Tigershark team members.