Lea Maurer - Peter Daland Endowed Swimming Coach Chair - Staff Directory

Staff Directory

Lea Maurer

Title:
Peter Daland Endowed Swimming Coach Chair
Email:
Phone:
(213) 740-8456

Lea Maurer, an Olympic gold medalist and former Stanford women’s head coach who guided the Cardinal for seven years, is in her third year as head coach of the USC men’s and women’s swim team. She was named head coach on April 1, 2022, and is entering her fourth season at the helm.

Under Maurer during the 2024-25 season, nine Trojans earned First Team CSCAA All-America honors, the most in a single season since 2020. USC set 11 school records, won three conference swimming titles (two individual, 1 relay) and saw five Trojans earn First Team All-Conference swimming honors during the Trojans inaugural season in the Big Ten. USC’s men’s swimming and diving program finished fourth at the conference championships and 15^th at NCAA’s, while the Women of Troy finished fifth at Big Ten’s and 11^th at the National Championship meet. 29 Trojans earned Big Ten Winter Academic honors, while 18 picked up First Team CSCAA Scholar All-America honors.

Maurer made history with the Trojans in the 2023-24 season as she led them to their first-ever 9-0 undefeated season, securing the most regular season wins in program history. During the run, the Trojans took down both No. 5 California and No. 4 Stanford, with the then-No.7 USC upset both conference foes in one season for the first time since 1996. At the Pac-12 Championships, USC wrapped up their performance with 1291 points, enough for a second place finish after taking home their most event wins since 2003 (9). To cap off the season, the Trojans finished eighth at the NCAAs, marking the Women of Troy's best finish since 2016, with 200 points even. USC recorded two third-place individual finishes (100 breast - Kaitlyn Dobler and 200y free – Minna Abraham) and set a pair of school records (200 free relay, 400 medley relay). Eight Trojans earned All-America honors at the NCAA Championships, with four USC relays earning first-team honors. The historic season earned Maurer her second Pac-12 Women's Swim Coach of the Year Award (first came at Stanford). Additionally, freshman phenom Minna Abraham was tabbed the Pac-12 Women's Newcomer of the Year following her monumental first season at Troy.

In 2023, Maurer led the Women of Troy to a 12^th place finish at NCAAs and a runner-up finish at the Pac-12 Championships. Troy finished 22^nd at NCAAs and was fifth at the Pac-12 Championships. Under Maurer, Senior Kaitlyn Dobler earned first team All-America honors in both the 100y and 200y breaststroke, while fifth year Isabelle Odgers earned first team honors in the 200y breast. At the Pac-12 Championships, Dobler won two conference crowns, claiming both breaststroke events. Both of her squads earned CSCAA Fall & Spring Scholar All-America team honors with 19 swimmers being named to the conferences Pac-12 Winter Academic Honor Roll.

Maurer's 2022 Trojans were highlighted by the efforts of sophomore Kaitlyn Dobler who became an NCAA champion in the 100y breast with a USC and Pac-12 record (56.93). Dobler, who repeated as the Pac-12 100y breast champion, claimed one of four conference crowns the Women of Troy won in 2022 (Isabelle Odgers 200y breast, Anicka Delgado 50y free, Caroline Pennington 1650y free). After finishing third at Pac-12's, the Trojans (5-2, 4-2) would wrap up the NCAA Championships at 16th overall, as four of Maurer's swimmers picked up All-American honors.The men's squad (5-2, 3-2) was led by grad transfer Trent Pellini, who finished fifth in the 100y breast at the NCAAs, helping Troy to a 26th place finish at the Championships. At Pac-12's, USC was fourth, with freshman Chris O'Grady leading a 2-3 Trojan finish in the 100y breast. 25 USC swimmers and divers earned CSCAA Scholar All-America honors with 22 swimmers being named to the Pac-12's Winter Academic Honor Roll.

Maurer, a 1992 Olympic gold and bronze medalist and a 1998 World Championships gold medalist, was the Stanford women’s head coach from 2006 through 2012, guiding the Cardinal to seven straight NCAA top 5 finishes as well as back-to-back Pac-10 titles in 2010-11. She has also served as a Stanford men’s water polo volunteer assistant coach since 2013.

Her Cardinal swim teams, which peaked with an NCAA runner-up finish in 2010, secured 13 NCAA individual and relay titles, 37 conference championships and 163 All-American honors while going 66-5 in dual meets.

Maurer has coached numerous swimmers who competed at the Olympics, World Championships, Pan Pacific Games and World University Games. Under her tutelage, Stanford swimmers Elaine Breeden and Julia Smit combined to earn three relay medals at the 2008 Olympics while the Cardinal’s Tara Kirk broke American records in the 100 and 200-yard breast in 2006. Breeden was also an American record holder (200 fly) while Smit set world and American records in the 200 and 400 I.M.

Maurer began her coaching career as an assistant coach at Northwestern in 1994-95 before embarking on a highly successful 10-year run as the head boys’ and girls’ coach at Lake Forest (Ill.) High. Her tenure there included a 2002-03 boys mythical national title and a 2003 girls mythical public school national title, a combined three state titles and eight Illinois Swimming Association Coach of the Year honors. Among her star swimmers was eventual Olympic gold medalist Matt Grevers.

Maurer swam on three Stanford national title teams (1992-93-94) and won NCAA titles in the 100y back each year while claiming the 200y back in 1993. She also raced on six Cardinal NCAA relay titles. She won 15 Pac-10 titles (seven individual, eight relays) and earned 21 All-American honors (19 at Stanford). Maurer, who competed one season for Florida as a freshman, was inducted into the Stanford Athletic Hall of Fame in November of 2006.

She graduated from Stanford with a bachelor’s degree in American Studies (1993) and a master’s in education (1994).