Making Waves: Whitman’s Head Swimming Coach Stacks Up the Wins by Putting People First

Head Swimming Coach Jenn Blomme is diving into her 26th season at Whitman College. And after all these years, her favorite part of being a coach is still seeing how her Blues Swimming student-athletes transform throughout their college years.

“So much growing is happening. So much change is happening,” she says. “At the very least, to be witness to that is amazing, and at best, to help support and foster some of that growth along the way is incredibly meaningful.”

Born in Walla Walla, Blomme swam as a student-athlete at Grinnell College in Iowa. The experience inspired her to become a coach, and a small liberal arts college in the Northwest seemed like the perfect place to grow her career.

“So many of the lessons I learned in those four years of college came through that athletic experience,” she says. “I was hopeful to carry that forward and be part of that for other people—and to stay involved in this sport that I love.”

High Honors

Blomme’s swimming teams have been incredibly successful, placing in the top of the Northwest Conference (NWC) Championships year after year. And she has coached two NCAA National Champions: Karl Mering ’15 and Tanner Filion ’23.

In 2025, she was recognized as NWC Coach of the Year for the 15th time. The annual award is voted on by NWC coaches at the end of the four-day-long championship meet. Blomme is honored to have received this recognition from her peers so many times. 

“You’ve been in fierce throes of competition with these people for four days, so to have their respect and admiration in those moments means a lot,” she says. “Nobody knows the challenges and effort and hard work that goes into coaching better than your peers who are doing the same thing all year.”

The Secret Sauce

Blomme’s approach to coaching goes well beyond the pool. She highlights the importance of sleep, nutrition, time management, academics and mental well-being in her students’ lives—and making sure that the focus and drive to perform in the pool don’t overshadow what her athletes need most.

“Whether it’s the need to miss practice to go to a tutoring session or anything else,” she says, “we’re trying to support the whole person as best we can.” 

Blomme also works hard to lighten the stress of swim meets and competitions. As the season progresses, she focuses on celebrating her swimmers’ accomplishments instead of pushing them to perform. 

“It can be really easy as an athlete to feel that every competition is a test,” Blomme says. “I like to make it more about celebrating the work you’ve put in, celebrating where your body is physically, celebrating where your mind and emotions and team are.” 

Another important facet of Blomme’s mindset is to have fun. Silly precompetition traditions lighten the stress load and build community within the team.

“I think our team does a great job of being fierce competitors who have a lot of fun while they’re doing it. If you took the silliness out of our team, we would not perform as well,” she says. 

Building the Team

Blomme approaches recruitment through a lens of tight community and team camaraderie.

“This is my 26th season of coaching this team, and no two rosters along those years are exactly the same, but there are these threads of what makes us us,” she says.

Swimmer Avery Riley ’28 says Blomme’s strategy works so well because she attracts people with good energy. 

“There’s a reason she’s so successful, and I think that’s because she knows how to cultivate a great team,” Riley says. “When she’s looking at recruiting, she’s not just looking at how fast you can go, but also what kind of person you are. She builds the team in a way that attracts the same energy: open-minded, good-hearted people. And that’s because she is both those things.” 

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