Past Waves All-American joins Pepperdine men’s water polo coaching staff

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Former Pepperdine water polo standout Spencer Hamby is now on the Waves coaching staff. Photo courtesy Pepperdine Athletics.

Spencer Hamby was one of several new Waves athletics coaching announcements last month

A former Pepperdine University All-American joined the Waves men’s water polo team’s coaching staff last week.

The university announced on July 29 that Spencer Hamby, a two-time American Collegiate Water Polo Coaches Association All-American and team captain, was hired as an assistant coach ahead of the Waves’ 2024 campaign, which begins next month. 

Hamby, a 2013 Pepperdine graduate, said in a statement that he is excited to be part of his alma mater’s coaching staff.

“I am looking forward to bringing my experience and positive energy to the team as well as helping our student-athletes thrive in the classroom and the pool,” he said. “Along with our excellent coaching staff on deck, I’m confident we can be competitive and win WCC championships.”

Hamby, who played professional water polo in Germany for seven years after graduating from Pepperdine, will help guide a squad that won a share of the West Coast Conference regular season title in 2023. 

Waves head coach Merrill Moses, who coached Hamby at Pepperdine, is excited to add his former player to the Waves coaching ranks.

“He is a Pepperdine alum who knows what it means to be a Wave and represent Pepperdine and our water polo program,” Moses remarked.“He was one of the best centers to ever play for Pepperdine and has also played professionally in Europe and for Team USA.”

Hamby was one of several new Waves athletics coaching announcements last month. 

Logan Robbins, Dane Stankiewicz, and Cameron Rowland joined new Waves baseball head coach Tyler LaTorre’s staff. 

Robbins, adept at coaching hitting with power, was a coach at Notre Dame for two seasons before joining Pepperdine. He helped the team hit a school record in home runs and lead college baseball in slugging percentage one season. Robbins also coached at Old Dominion for seven years and Kentucky Wesleyan College in 2015. 

“I can’t wait to see Logan dive in and develop elite-level hitters,” LaTorre said. “In the short time that we have gotten to know each other, Logan and I have already aligned our goals for the program and are ready to elevate Waves baseball.”

Stankiewicz was an assistant coach at UC San Diego for two seasons previously and had the same role at Saddleback College in 2022.

LaTorre said adding Stankiewicz to the coaching staff, which also includes pitching coach Rowland, was a huge step for the Waves. 

“He had a great career playing at Grand Canyon prior to getting into his coaching career,” LaTorre noted. “Dane brings a youthful energy that our players will love.”

Also, Martin Redlicki, a former Pepperdine Waves men’s tennis volunteer assistant coach, rejoined the team’s coaching staff as an assistant coach. Redlicki rejoined Pepperdine after serving as the Oklahoma State men’s tennis team’s assistant coach from 2022-24. 

Redlicki, a two-time NCAA doubles champion and the 2018 Intercollegiate Tennis Association Player of the Year at UCLA, was a Waves volunteer assistant coach from 2020-22.

Hamby, the new addition to the Waves water polo coaching staff, played pro water polo in Germany from 2013-20. He helped Wasserfreunde Spandau 04, a team in Berlin, win two Bundesliga championships during that time. Afterwards, Hamby came back to the U.S. and was the head water polo coach for Garland Independent School District in Dallas. The former player was also the coach of the Southwest Zone Olympic Development Program Cadet Team and was tapped to be the top coach for the Cadet division at the 2024 USA Water Polo Olympic Developmental Championships.

As a Wave from 2009-13, Hamby tallied 20 goals in each of his last three seasons and earned spots on Team USA in 2009 and 2011 at the Junior World Championships. 

Moses, a Waves assistant coach and associate head coach before being promoted to head coach in March and a former Olympian and Pepperdine All-American, said Hamby was one of the best centers to ever dive in the pool for Pepperdine.

“He will bring a wealth of knowledge to our program with his experience as a player and a coach and will help our program succeed in reaching our goals of winning conference championships and competing for NCAA Championships,” Moses noted. 

The Waves water polo coaching staff also includes one of the most iconic people in American water polo history, Hall of Famer Terry Schroeder, the associate head coach, who served as Pepperdine’s head coach for 32 seasons, and assistant coach Mike Tragitt, a former Waves standout.