SPRC Stingrays: SPRC Coaches

Ken Keer, Head Swim Coach (pchuckleheads@yahoo.com)

The is Ken's sixth season with the Stingrays. He has over fifteen years of experience at the age group and high school levels. Before coming to SPRFC, Ken coached at Howard County YMCA, Catonsville YMCA, and club and high school programs in Pennsylvania..

Ken is an ASCA Level 3 certified coach, and has coached several National Top-16 swimmmers, District Champions, Regional Champions, State Qualifiers, and Zone Qualifiers. He places a great emphasis on technique and developing the whole swimmer.

Ken lives in Gambrills with his wife and three daughters. During the day he is a Technology Specialist with the U.S. Census Bureau.

Melissa Albers, Assistant Swim Coach - Age Group Bronze & Silver (Melalbers@aol.com)

     This is Melissa's fourth season with the Stingrays. She will be working primarily with the Angelfish and the Swordfish groups. She is an ASCA Level 2 Certified Coach and an ASCA 8&Under Certified Coach. She coached the SPRFC Masters team in 2005-06, and she runs stroke clinics for St. Andrews swim team in the summer. Melissa also holds certifications in NFHS (High School) Officiating and she is a Maryland Swim Official-Meet Referee/Stroke & Turn Official.
     Melissa is married and has 3 children, and she has lived in Severna Park for 11 years. She swam competitively for her local YMCA and Summer Swim clubs.

This is Melissa's second season with the Stingrays. She will be responsible for the Barracuda group. In the summer she coaches at Waugh Chapel Swim Club. She has been teaching swimming for 13 years and coaching for 10 years. Currently she coaches a non-competitive swim group and teaches lessons at Sportfit in Bowie. She has been an assistant coach at Bowie State University and for Retrievers Aquatic Club. She was also the co-head coach for the Pointer Ridge Porpoises Swim Club.
Coach Melissa has a decorated past as a swimmer. She swam on four Maryland Zone Long Course teams and one short course team, she swam a national top 16 time in the 13-14 women's 800 free relay, was selected to the All-County Team all four years in high school, and competed in the Washington DC area Metro Championships. She went on to swim two years with the UMBC Retrievers, qualifying for the NEC Conference championship meets and the Eastern College Athletic Conference Championships. She also qualified for Sectionals in the mile swim, competed in open water swims, and still competes in triathlons.

Chris Klemm, Assistant Coach Age Group Silver and Gold (cbklemm@yahoo.com)

Chris swam competitively for Marymount University in Arlington, Virginia from 1992-1996 (NCAA Division III-Capital Athletic Conference). He received Swimmer of the Year honors for the 1992-1993 season and belonged to the NCAA Academic All-American Swim Teams from 1992-1996. He was the varsity men’s team captain from 1993-1996 and after his freshman season he held (including relays) fourteen school and freshman records. He still held numerous individual and relay records after graduating from Marymount University in 1996.

In 1998, he became the Head Coach for the Masters Swim Team at SPRFC and directed the team until 2001. As a coach, his swimmers established new Maryland State Masters Records and National Top Ten Times. During the summer season, Chris is the Head Swimming Coach for the Wynnewwod Warriors in Arbutus, Maryland.

Chris lives in Halethorpe with his wife and four children. During the day, Chris is a Management Officer with U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C.