Coach Nick started swimming rec at the age of 5 with many tears and a lot of thrashing in the pool. Across the course of 13 more years of swimming rec and year round on Terrapins, Coach Nick has found an immense love for the sport.
Coach Nick started his coaching experience at the age of 12, with teaching little kids how to swim. Later on, progressing to assistant coach on Dana Hills and later Woodlands, Coach Nick has been coaching for longer than any kid can spend on a rec swim team. Coaching has only deepened his adoration for the sport and he is excited to share his knowledge, excitement, and love for swimming with Scottsdale.
Outside of the pool, Coach Nick enjoys lifting weights, trying new foods, and of course doing his best to swim more than a hundred at Walnut Creek Masters Swim Team.
The motto that Coach Nick lives by for swimming is, if you're going fast, then you're having fun, and if you're having fun, then you're going fast. This is something that he hopes everyone can learn for swimming to make the world of rec swimming faster and more fun.
Coach Mackenzie is excited to begin her 4th year coaching for Scottsdale. Growing up in Virginia, she swam summer league for 12 years - where she coached for 3 years - and competed in year-round club swimming for 10. Some of her fondest childhood memories were made at the pool, where her love for the sport was ignited. After playing Division 1 lacrosse in college, Coach Mackenzie knew she would eventually return to her roots in the pool. Her background as both a high-level swimmer and collegiate athlete gives her a unique coaching perspective, emphasizing technique, mental toughness, and teamwork. She has worked with swimmers of all levels, from beginners to competitive athletes, guiding them to personal bests, championship performances, and, most importantly, happy memories at the pool. She is committed to helping swimmers develop their skills, and confidence both in and out of the pool. Above all, she hopes to inspire every child she coaches to enjoy swimming as much as she does. Outside of coaching, Mackenzie swims for the Walnut Creek Masters Swim Team and enjoys spending time hiking with her husband and puppy.
Coach Cole had an early start with swimming starting swim lessons when he was just a little one! Although he loved the water, it wasn't always easy to get him to swim his heart out. He started rec swim at age 9 and his swimming world really changed when he joined Scottsdale at 10! At Scottsdale he began to love to race, to push himself, as he was so proud to be part of the Scottsdale team! He swam for the squids through 18, each year his love for swimming and our Scottsdale community continued to grow. Coach Cole also swam for Aquabears, De La Salle HS, and Las Positas College. He also played water polo at both De La Salle and Las Positas. Out of the water Coach Cole enjoys fishing, weight lifting, hiking, and spending time with friends. With an extensive background in competitive swimming, coaching private lessons, teaching splash crew lessons, and as our assistant coach in 2024, Coach Cole is excited to continue sharing his knowledge and love for swim with as many Squids as possible. He is excited to continue coaching this year, inspiring swimmers to push themselves, improve technique, drop times, and have fun!
Taylor Madge is a 2024 graduate of Carondelet High School and attends Chapman University in Orange County. She is majoring in Health Science with a double minor in Nutrition and Honors Leadership. Taylor's goal is to be a physical therapist specializing in sports injuries and one day own her own practice. Taylor has lived in Northgate her whole life and been part of the swim and soccer community since she was five. She is also a competitive CrossFit athlete for Diablo CrossFit in Pleasant Hill and most recently Anaheim CrossFit. Last spring she hung up her cleats after 12 years with Walnut Creek Surf, and the Summer of 2024 was Taylor's last season as a Scottsdale swimmer. She was a Splash Crew instructor for the past 3 summers and loved teaching future squids. Taylor says the best part about rec swimming is it brings so many different groups of people together. There is no other sport where boys and girls from ages 4 to 18 compete in one place, where everyone cheers for everyone and success isn't only measured by a first place finish but by a personal time improvement. Taylor's mission this summer is to teach stroke proficiency at all levels and to add focus to critical parts of racing like starts and turns. Once you hone those skills, speed will follow. Taylor's favorite part of Scottsdale is the community, she says "It truly feels like a family." She is very excited to be part of the coaching staff and to continue SSC traditions. GO SQUIDS!