USD alumna and Coyote Sports Hall of Famer Jill Smolczyk served as a volunteer coach for the Coyotes starting in 2018 and became head diving coach in the spring of 2023.
Smolczyk competed for South Dakota from 2004-08. She was named 2008 NCAA Division II Women’s Diver of the Year after placing second in the 3-meter diving competition and coming back two days later to win the 1-meter title at the national championship meet in Columbia, Missouri. Smolczyk is a six-time all-American who won four NCC championships.
Smolczyk hails from Omaha, Nebraska. She received an NCAA postgraduate scholarship, attended the University of Nebraska Medical Center and earned a doctorate of physical therapy. She has since worked as a physical therapist, first at Clarinda Regional Health Center and then at Sanford Vermillion Medical Center since 2016.
Smolczyk resides in Vermillion with her husband, David. The couple has two daughters, Emma and Kora.
