BRIDGEPORT, Pa. — The CWPA Remote interview series continues as Massachusetts Institute of Technology head coach Austin Ringheim talks with Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Director of Communications Ed Haas about recruiting and coaching at a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III institution and more.
Entering his second season as the MIT water polo head and physical education and wellness instructor in the Fall of 2020, Ringheim came to MIT from Austin College in Sherman, Texas, where he served as the assistant head coach for both the men’s and women’s water polo programs.
In his first season at MIT, Ringheim guided the Engineers to a third place finish at the inaugural USA Water Polo Division III National Championship at Whittier College and to the most wins in a season since 2015. At the first-ever National Championship event hosted at Whittier, MIT defeated rival Johns Hopkins University, 20-13, to finish in third place. He coached two Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC) Division III All-America selections in Clyde Huibregtse and Miller Geschke and his squad posted the top grade point average (GPA) in the country for the sixth time in program history.
Prior to his time at MIT, Ringheim served as the assistant head coach of the Austin College water polo teams in 2018-2019, which is the only NCAA collegiate varsity program in the state of the Texas. At Austin College, he assisted in national and international recruiting, budget preparation and travel, ordering of equipment, film breakdown and home game management.
In the 2018-19 season for the Austin men’s and women’s programs, the men placed sixth in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Tournament and the women finished as the runner-up at the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Division III Tournament. The men’s team had two ACWPC Honorable Mention All-America picks, while the women’s team had the CWPA Rookie of the Year and a pair of All-America honorees.
Academically, the ‘Roos had 10 men’s players named to the ACWPC All-Academic Team and three members of the women’s team recognized with All-Academic Team accolades.
In addition to his collegiate experience, Ringheim has worked as the assistant development boys coach for the Olympic Development Program with the United States Water Polo Association Southwest Zone since 2018. He has also worked as a youth coach in Dallas, Texas over the past year with Thunder Water Polo Club and served as a high performance coordinator with the United States Water Polo Association for two years in Huntington Beach, Calif.
As a player, Ringheim was a two-year player at Golden West College from 2012-14 before transferring to Whittier for his final two seasons. During his time at Whittier, he was team captain of the 2015 squad that finished as the runner-up in the SCIAC. He was also a member of the 2014 team that captured the SCIAC Championship and qualified for the NCAA Tournament, along with being named to the 2015 SCIAC Sportsmanship Team.
Ringheim graduated from Whittier College in May 2016, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in kinesiology and nutrition sciences.
