Hello, Stingrays! My name is Paul Datovech, and I’m excited to be back with CORA for my third season as head coach! I am a graduate of the University of Mary Washington, where I earned a degree in Business Administration with a minor in Sports Management. While at UMW, I competed on the varsity men’s swim team. I recently served as an Assistant Coach at Randolph-Macon College in Ashland, Virginia, where I had the opportunity to coach two of our own coaches, Casey and Lucas.

My swimming journey began in third grade with the Patrick Henry YMCA and the Ashland Barracudas. I still hold a few records with both teams, and one of the most rewarding parts of coaching has been watching swimmers work to break them. In high school, I was a four-year varsity swimmer and three-time team MVP at Patrick Henry High School. During my freshman year, I started swimming year-round under Jonathan Kaplan with the JCC Dolphin Club before continuing with the SwimRVA Rapids when he became the program’s inaugural head coach.

I continue to stay active in the sport by competing in Masters swimming alongside many lifelong friends I’ve made through the sport. My favorite events are the 50 and 100 backstroke, but I love swimming and coaching all four strokes and all distances.

I began coaching as a junior coach for the Patrick Henry Piranhas from 2015–2017. In 2022 and 2023, I returned to my childhood GRAL team, the Ashland Barracudas, as an assistant coach, where I learned valuable lessons under head coach Kevin Trent. As a head coach, my goal is to create an environment where swimmers can achieve personal bests, build friendships, enjoy team traditions, and take pride in representing CORA every time they compete.

Outside of the pool, I enjoy spending time outdoors with friends and family, watching NBA basketball, and cheering on the Golden State Warriors. A few fun facts about me: I’m ambidextrous, the tallest person in my immediate family, and I have an 11-year-old mini labradoodle named Newton.

Go CORA!

Hi, Stingrays! My name is Christine Datovech, and I’m thrilled to be returning to CORA for my second season as an assistant coach!

I am a student-athlete at Loyola University Maryland, where I am pursuing my academic and athletic careers as a Business (Marketing) major.

My swimming journey began in Kindergarten at the Patrick Henry YMCA and in summer league with the Ashland Barracudas. At age 12, I began swimming year-round with the Dolphin Club before joining the SwimRVA Rapids with my brother the following season.

I graduated from Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School, where I was a four-year varsity swimmer and four-time team MVP, a three-time state champion in fly and free, R-TD First Team All-Metro, and a four-time NISCA All-American. I still hold nine GRAL regular season records and four GRAL Champs records. In my final season of GRAL, I received the Len Everett Scholarship.

Some of my favorite memories growing up come from summer league swimming, and I’m excited to help inspire a new generation of GRAL swimmers to love the sport!

Fun facts: I can communicate in American Sign Language (ASL). When he was 18 and I was 15, Coach Paul and I broke two team records in the 200 medley and 200 freestyle relays. Another fun fact: I competed head-to-head with Olympian Gretchen Walsh in the fly leg of the 200 medley relay, where she posted the fastest time in history!

My name is Casey Dingman, and I’m pumped to return for my second season with the team! I’m a rising junior at Randolph-Macon College, majoring in Business with a concentration in Marketing and minoring in Communications. I also compete for the varsity men’s swim team at Randolph-Macon.

Hello CORA Stingrays! My name is Lucas Swager. I am part of the class of 2029 at Randolph-Macon College, where I major in Environmental Studies with an area of expertise in Mathematics. I currently swim on the Men’s swim team at Randolph-Macon, but I started swimming back in 2021 for the Ashland Barracudas. I wasn’t very good when I started, but I thought swimming was lots of fun, so I immediately started swimming year-round at SwimRVA. My best events are the 200 and 100 breaststroke as well as the 500 freestyle. My favorite accomplishment is the team record I set in the 100 breaststroke for the Ashland Barracudas, and my favorite memories are my last season swimming for my summer league team and my first championship meet in college. Outside of swimming, my hobbies include riding my bike and playing board games with my friends. I also like to sing and play the piano. This is my first time ever coaching, so I am very excited to get to meet all of you and to work with a great team of coaches!