Bryan Christiansen enters his fifth season as head coach of the Quincy University men's and women's swimming programs in 2026-27 after overseeing unprecedented growth and success since relaunching the sport in 2022.
Under Christiansen's leadership, Quincy has quickly emerged as a competitive swimming program in the GLVC. In just four seasons, the Hawks have produced four NCAA All-America performances, multiple NCAA Championship qualifiers and continued to raise the standard at both the conference and national levels. Christiansen was named Quincy's Men's Coach of the Year in 2024 and has coached three All-Americans as a head coach and two as an assistant.
The 2025-26 season marked another historic step forward for Quincy Swimming. For the first time in program history, the Hawks placed at least one swimmer in the championship finals of every event at the GLVC Championships. The men's team climbed to a program-best fifth-place finish after placing eighth the previous season, while the women improved to eighth after finishing ninth in 2025. Both programs surpassed their team scoring goals, with the men eclipsing 600 points and the women surpassing the 500-point mark. Quincy also added two more NCAA All-America performances on the men's side.
During the 2024-25 season, Christiansen guided the Hawks to their most successful campaign to that point. Wyatt Walsh and Borna Kudwoli earned NCAA All-America honors as Quincy finished 29th nationally, while the men's team placed eighth in the GLVC. The women's team established six pool records and two program records while earning victories over St. Ambrose and Illinois Tech.
Following significant roster growth in 2023-24, Quincy expanded from 16 to 37 student-athletes and continued establishing itself as a competitive NCAA Division II program. Walsh qualified for the NCAA Championships and narrowly missed All-America status with a 17th-place finish in the 400 IM, while the Hawks set 16 program records. Walsh also earned Quincy's First Year and Career Achievement awards during his time with the program.
Christiansen launched a new era of Quincy Swimming during the 2022-23 season by restarting the women's program and establishing the university's inaugural men's swimming team. The Hawks recorded five NCAA B cuts in their first season, highlighted by freshman Wyatt Walsh posting the 11th-fastest time in NCAA Division II in the 400 IM.
Prior to Quincy, Christiansen served three seasons as head coach at Frostburg State University from 2018-21, guiding the Bobcats through their transition to NCAA Division II competition. During his tenure, Frostburg produced seven conference champions, the conference Swimmer of the Year and Freshman of the Year, and broke 54 team and pool records. Christiansen also coached Connor Gioffreda, who earned a spot on the U.S. National Team and set a world record before competing at the U.S. Paralympic Trials.
Before Frostburg, Christiansen was an assistant coach at John Carroll University during the 2017-18 season, where he helped both the men's and women's teams capture Ohio Athletic Conference championships while the coaching staff earned OAC Women's Coaching Staff of the Year honors. He also spent two seasons as an assistant coach at SUNY New Paltz from 2015-17, helping coach eight conference champions while both programs completed undefeated seasons in 2016-17.
Christiansen began his coaching career at the club level, serving as an assistant coach with Sea Dragons Swim Club from 2008-11 before becoming head age group coach at Victor Swim Club from 2011-15. He has coached swimming at the club, high school, collegiate, masters and summer league levels and has directed numerous swim camps, including the QU Swim Camp.
A native of Rochester, New York, Christiansen competed at Hiram College from 2004-08, specializing in backstroke and middle-distance events. A three-year team captain, he was a member of the school's record-setting 800 freestyle relay team, whose record still stands. Christiansen graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Hiram in 2008 with a bachelor's degree in history before earning a master's degree in communication and media technology from the Rochester Institute of Technology.
Christiansen and his wife, Sarah Lucey, an attorney for the Appellate Court of Illinois, reside in Quincy with their two sons, George and Johnny, and their cats, Missy and Linc. Outside of swimming, Christiansen enjoys Warhammer 40,000 and follows the New York Knicks, Toronto Blue Jays, Buffalo Sabres and Miami Dolphins.
