In year three with the Eagles, Caldwell helped guide the Eagles to a sixth-place finish in the CCSA Championships and post six different school records. Annamaria Hornyak dominated the 2020-21 season under coach Caldwell, earning CCS Freshman Swimmer of the Year. Hornyak also won multiple Swimmer of the Week awards, while her and Katie Knight swept the final week of voting.
In her second season as the head coach at Georgia Southern, Caldwell had 12 personal records broke in the final day of the CCSA Championships. Caldwell has had multiple swimmers and divers of the week, as well as having Elizabeth Chemey earning Google Cloud/CoSIDA Academic All-District Honors.
In 2019 the Eagles finished fourth in the CCSA Championships hosted in Lynchburg, Va. Anna Moers advanced from the CCSA Championship and earned herself an invite to the CSCAA National Invitational, racing in four events over a three-day period. Moers advanced to one final heat and earned 13 points for the Eagles during those events.
Amanda Caldwell was named the Georgia Southern head women's swimming & diving coach on May 4, 2018. Caldwell joins the Eagles from Rice University, where she has served as the Owls' assistant coach for the last six seasons.
During her time at Rice, the Owls have captured three Conference USA titles, as well as the 2014 CSCAA (Collegiate Swimming Coaches Association of America) Invitational Championships. Individually, Rice swimmers captured 28 C-USA meet titles in six seasons and the school qualified swimmers for seven different NCAA Championship events in those seasons.
Caldwell was also the recipient of the prestigious Jean Freeman Scholarship from the CSCAA in 2018, given annually to assistant coaches whose exceptional contributions have brought recognition to their college or university, and whose leadership, integrity, honesty, competitive attitude and personal graciousness epitomize those characteristics reflected by Jean Freeman, longtime women's swimming coach at the University of Minnesota.
Prior to joining Rice University, Caldwell served as a volunteer assistant coach at Georgia Tech for four seasons, while also coaching for the Dynamo Swim Club in Atlanta. A four-year letterwinner at Youngstown State, Caldwell received her bachelor's degree in 2006 from the institution and earned her master's degree from James Madison University in 2008.
A native of Martins Ferry, Ohio, Caldwell is a 2001 graduate of Martins Ferry High School. She is a certified member of the American Swim Coaches Association (Level II) and a member of United States Swimming.
Amanda, her husband Beau, and daughter Ella Mae reside in Statesboro, Georgia.
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING ABOUT COACH CALDWELL
"Georgia Southern has made a great decision in hiring Amanda Caldwell to lead their swimming and diving program. Amanda has been deliberately preparing for this opportunity throughout her career. She will elevate team expectations and performances with a caring and accountable heart. I look forward to following Eagle Swimming and Diving's growth under her leadership.”
Seth Huston
Head Women's Swimming Coach, Rice University
"Amanda Caldwell is first and foremost a caring and considerate woman. She puts herself in the shoes of her athletes at every stage in the coach-athlete relationship. Amanda is a tireless student of her profession. Amanda's quest for knowledge will translate into an enthusiasm, and an increase in passion, that the Georgia Southern student-athletes have for their sport. I am a better coach for having the opportunity to share the deck with her during different chapters in my coaching career.”
Rich Murphy
Assistant Men's & Women's Swimming & Diving Coach, University of Tennessee
"Amanda is a phenomenal coach and I am thrilled for her new venture to lead at Georgia Southern. She has grown immensely in her position at Rice and through the professional development events she's chosen to attend. Amanda is a hard worker who is dedicated, organized and loyal. She is also a coach who cares deeply for her student-athletes and their growth while also knowing when to be goofy and laugh with them. Knowing her ties to Georgia, her style and expertise and her professionalism in coaching, Georgia Southern will be a team on the rise very quickly.”
Katie Robinson
Head Women's Swimming & Diving Coach, Tulane University
"I am so happy for Amanda Caldwell and the Georgia Southern swim team. Amanda is an amazing coach who has worked very hard in our sport. She has shown she can help her swimmers grow academically, athletically, and emotionally in a sport that sets them up for future successes in their careers and in life. She has a great coaching mind and has really helped Rice grow over her six years in the program. She will do great things at Georgia Southern!"
Colleen Murphy
Head Women's Swimming Coach, United States Air Force Academy
"I've known Amanda Caldwell for the last two years as she has attended a Women's Coaching Summit that I facilitate. Amanda is a coach and an educator who values the learning process. She seeks out opportunities to learn, grow, and expand and brings that enthusiasm for growth to the people around her - including her staff and student-athletes. She's passionate about coaching and the sport of swimming. Amanda finds creative ways to inspire and motivate student-athletes to tap into their full potential both in and out of the pool.”
Erica Quam
Founder and Director, The Coaching Experience
"Amanda Caldwell is a wonderful choice to lead the program at Georgia Southern, as a coach she understands all facets of leading a college program and will immediately build on the existing foundation. Amanda will have a tremendous impact on the development of the current and future women in the program in the pool, in the classroom and most importantly for their future."
Joel Shinofield
Executive Director, College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America
