Paton McClung joined the Ospreys in 2007 with a depth of swimming experience as a coach and as an athlete. Paton moved to the area from Tacoma, Washington where he has been coaching for the past 12 years. In Tacoma, Paton was the Head Coach for the University Place Aquatic Club (12 years), the assistant swim coach for the University of Puget Sound (7 years), and the assistant coach for the Curtis High School water polo team (5 years).
Paton is a member of the American Swimming Coaches Association (ASCA). ASCA requires its members to continue their education through classes, clinics, books, and journals. Within ASCA, Paton is certified at Level 4 for USA Swimming, NCAA Division III, and NAIA. He is also certified at Level 2 for Masters swimming.
Paton’s background as an athlete began as a freshman in high school and took off during his junior year. That year, he was named All-American as a water polo player. In his senior year, he was again named an All-American for water polo as well as earning All-American honors in three swimming events. Paton's combination of grades, test scores, and athletic abilities earned him the opportunity to study and swim at the University of California, Berkeley.
During his 5 years at Cal, Paton overcame many obstacles, including a broken femur, to earn All-American status in seven relay events, two of which established new school records. At Pac-10 Conference Championships, Paton was a member of the winning the 400 free relay, where he split a 43.61 to help his team hold off Stanford. During all 5 years, Paton qualified to compete at USA Swimming's Senior National Championships.
His love of the sport extends from the deck into the water as Paton also trains with the La Jolla Swim Masters 4–5 days a week.
Jaden Hackbarth, Head Age Group Coach
Jaden Hackbarth has been with the Wind N’ Sea swim team as a coach for over five years, starting back in 2017. He primarily coaches the Novice through Blue groups while also helping out with the Senior group from time to time. Jaden was also a swimmer on the team since 2011 and worked his way up through every level from novice swimmer to coach. He graduated from La Jolla High school in 2017 and is currently attending Mesa Community College with a plan to transfer to UC to pursue a degree in Marine Biology or Bioinformatics. With a long history within the team, Jaden aims to provide insight to swimmers and parents alike to help them succeed on Wind N Sea and in the swimming world.
Sydney Lacey, Assistant Coach
Sydney Lacey moved to San Diego in 2021 from Austin, Texas. She grew up in Dallas, Texas playing many sports, but swimming was the one that stuck. She swam for a club all through adolescence. She was the Team Captain of her high school team her junior and senior year and played water polo in the off-season (MVP for two years!) She graduated from Hendrix College in 2018, where she was a member of the Women's Swimming and Diving Team for all four years and was Team Captain her senior year. Her events were the 200 Individual Medely, 100 Butterfly, and 200 Butterfly. Sydney grew up with an excellent swimming example in her grandfather, Tudor Lacey, who was an All-American swimmer at Southern Methodist University, a member of the South African National Team, and swam widely on the world stage in the 1960s. Tudor was one of her first coaches and currently coaches the La Jolla High Swim Team, which practices on the same pool deck as Wind N Sea. This is her first coaching position, though she has many years of experience as a swim instructor. Her coaching style emphasizes proper technique, foundational strength, body awareness, and bringing an element of fun to each practice. She primarily coaches Novice, White, and Red groups.
Taylor Wassel, Summer Coach
Taylor Wassel has been a Wind N Sea coach since 2019 and primarily coaches novice, white, and red groups. She joined the Wind N Sea swim team in 2017 and now swims with Wind N Sea and masters during the summer. Taylor graduated from La Jolla Country Day school in 2021 and swam on the varsity swim team all four years. She attends the University of Idaho and is on the women's swimming and diving team. She plans on majoring in Psychology and minoring in Women's Gender Sexuality Studies. She will coach for the Vandal Aquatic club during the school year in Moscow. Taylor is here coaching during the summers while finishing school and then plans to move back to San Diego to continue coaching year-round.
Michael Schatz
Coach Mikey grew up in San Diego, swimming and playing water polo. He was the team captain for his high school swim and water polo teams. He continued his aquatic sports at UC San Diego where again he competed in swimming and water polo for four seasons. He was team captain of the UCSD Men's Intercollegiate Water Polo Team during his senior year. Coach Mikey was an ocean lifeguard for many summers, and enjoys open water swimming as well. He has competed in the Trans Tahoe Relay Swim for over 20 years, several Gatormans, and a couple of 5-mile swims. Coach Mikey has been coaching with Wind N Sea Swim Team for 3 years now, and has concentrated mostly on the Novice and White groups.
Student Athlete Coaches:
Reid Krebs
Reid Krebs is a familiar face on the Coggan pool deck. He sees the deck from many angles as a student, a high school swimmer, and a coach and swimmer at Wind N Sea. He is currently a junior at La Jolla High School and has been coaching with Wind N Sea since August 2021. He has swum with the team since 2015 and is occasionally seen at Masters workouts, as well. Reid is excited to help you and your child get the most out of their experience and the Wind N Sea Swim Team!
Marco Warma
Marco is a fairly new resident of La Jolla. He has been a member of the Wind N Sea Ospreys for a year and a half. He has been swimming competitively for 11 years and loves constantly being in and around the water. He attended the Canadian National Championship in Montreal, Quebec in the summer of 2022. This was his first international swim meet and an amazing experience for him. Marco has been coaching for Wind N Sea since 2021 and loves every second of it.
