Eric Sprague is in his second stint and seventh overall year with the Omaha swimming & diving program. Sprague joined the Mavericks again in 2015-16 to serve as the diving coach, having previously occupied the role in 2012-13.
In Sprague’s tenure, the Mavericks have totaled six NCAA Zone Diving qualifiers, four All-Summit selections and seven Summit League Diver of the Week honorees.
In 2019-20, Sprague coached Kady Eller to become the first Maverick diver in DI era to reach the semifinals at a large fall invite, placing 23rd overall at the Phil Hansell Invite in Houston. Sprague also helped Eller and Reece Cooper reach the finals at the Summit League Championships.
In 2018-19, Sprague helped Annika Clinton and Maddy Taylor qualify for NCAA Zone D Diving Championships. Clinton was a CSCAA Academic All-American and named Summit League Diver of the Week three times on the year. Sprague led the only diving group in the conference to place three divers in the championship final of the 3-meter and 1-meter dives.
The 2017-18 Summit League Women’s Diving Coach of the Year led the trio of Andrea Brosnahan, Monica Houck and Clinton to qualify for the NCAA Zone D Diving Championships in 2017-18. Clinton and Houck clinched All-Summit recognition with top-three finishes while Clinton was named Academic All-Summit and Houck garnered Summit League Women’s Diver of the Year honors.
In 2016-17, Brosnahan was Omaha’s First NCAA Zones qualifier and picked up all-league recognition, and two Maverick divers made finals appearances at the league championships. Sprague’s first season, 2012-13, saw Miranda Knipfer place third in the 1-meter event as Omaha’s first Division I conference diving medalist.
Previously, Sprague was the head swimming & diving coach at Bellevue East from 2010 to 2012 and the diving coach at BEHS from 2007 to 2010. He produced multiple state and conference diving finalists and medalists, including two Metro Conference champions. Additionally, Sprague worked with the Nebraska Diving Club from 2009 to 2013, guiding multiple regional champions, zone qualifiers and champions and age-group national qualifiers.
Sprague graduated with his associate’s degree in coaching from Iowa Western in 2013. He and his wife, Lesley, have two daughters, Callie and Jessica.
