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Nicole Younts is in her third year as head coach of Saint Mary's College Rowing, after joining the Gaels as an assistant coach in 2007.
Younts brings expertise and excitement to the growing Gaels program from her previous stints at Stanford and Cal.
Younts came to Saint Mary's from Stanford University, where she was assistant coach for the varsity lightweight program from 2004-2007. During Younts' tenure with the Cardinal, she helped the developing varsity program attain both regional and national success. Her boats were undefeated at the Pacific Coast Rowing Championships, the conference championship for the lightweight team. Additionally, while at Stanford, the team became the dominant lightweight program on the west coast. The Varsity Lightweight 8+ won two PCRC championships (2005, 2007), two victories in the AW Coggeshall Cup at the San Diego Crew Classic (2005, 2007) and two top-five finishes at the IRA National Championships (2005, 2007).
In the summer of 2006, Coach Younts assisted the U.S. U23 women's team during training development and selection in California. The selected crew went on to win a gold medal and set a world record at the U23 World Championships in Hazewinkel, Belgium.
During 2003-2004, Younts was the assistant varsity coach at the University of California at Berkeley. She coached the Varsity 4+ that finished second at PAC-10s and fifth at NCAAs. Cal Women's Crew won their first PAC-10 team championship that spring, on the way to finishing fourth at NCAAs.
Younts began rowing at West Springfield High School in Springfield, VA. She attended the University of Virginia and graduated with a BS in Civil Engineering. While rowing for Virginia, Younts earned four letters. Her accomplishments include medaling at the Eastern Sprints, the IRA National Championships, and the Head of the Charles. During her senior year, Younts was a team captain of the Virginia squad that finished second at the NCAA Championships.
Coach Younts was a finalist at the 1999 CRASH-B Indoor World Rowing Championships. She was selected to the U.S. Lightweight Development camp at Riverside Boat Club in 1999 and competed at U.S. Rowing Nationals and Canadian Henley.
From 2000-2004, Younts taught at and ran a number of SCORE! Educational Centers in Virginia and the San Francisco Bay Area. She started coaching in 2000, leading the freshmen girls at West Springfield High School to the semi-finals at Stotesbury for the first time.
Younts lives in Moraga with her husband, Dave O'Neill, and newborn son, Dash.
An avid cyclist, Younts competes in both road and track events. She believes success stems from having a positive attitude and a great work ethic and enjoys the opportunity to get her message across every day.
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