Mount Saint Mary College Athletics

NEWBURGH, N.Y. - Former women's swimming head coach Mary Damm was inducted as a member of the Mount Saint Mary College Athletics Hall of Fame on Friday, April 17, 2015.

Damm led the women’s swimming program to five Skyline Conference championships in her 15 seasons as the team’s head coach. She was the first coach in the team’s history, starting up the program in 1997. She finished her career with a 123-91-3 overall record, and had a winning percentage of .500 or better in 11 of her 15 seasons. She was named Skyline Women’s Swimming Coach of the Year three times (2004-05, 2007-08, 2009-10).
 
During her time at the helm of the program, Damm’s swimmers set 15 records that were still standing entering 2015. She also coached four Skyline Women’s Swimmers of the Year, seven Rookies of the Year, two Skyline Women’s Swimming All-Stars and 31 women’s swimming individual and relay champions.
 
Mary’s husband, Gene, is also part of the Mount Saint Mary College Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2014. They were both inducted into the Dutchess County Sports Museum Hall of Fame in 1986.
 
In nearly 35 years of coaching, Gene and Mary Damm worked with a number of teams in the Hudson Valley including teams from West Point, Vassar College, St. Mary's and Roy C. Ketchum. The Damms have also worked with the Bernal Gators and Cumberland (R.I.) swim clubs.
 
Gene and Mary Damm co-authored two swimming books. They wrote Guide for Competitive Swimmers, which was published in 2000, and Fast Swimming with Technique and Mental Awareness, in 2013. Both books currently has five-star ratings on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
 
The Damms have three children, seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.