ERIE, Pa. — Gannon University Associate Director of Athletics and former water polo coach Don Sherman will be inducted into the Erie County Aquatics Hall of Fame this Sunday, April 30, during a ceremony at the Ambassador Center’s Hemingway Ballroom. The event is scheduled for Noon.
Sherman, six other individuals and one team were chosen to be part of the 2017 inductee class. Sherman joins Tim Critchfield (McDowell – 1980), Anthony “Tony” Engro (Cathedral Prep – 1974), Christian “J.R.” Jensen (Fairview – 1988), Albert Mango (East – 1924), Ryan Postas (Cathedral Prep – 1998), Elliot Spaeder (Cathedral Prep – 2002) and the 2004 McDowell girls water polo team. Villa Maria diver Joelle Williams and Mercyhurst Prep swimmer Jacob Durmis will also be honored as recipients of the Pat Hart Scholarships.
Sherman is currently in his 13th year as Gannon’s Associate Director of Athletics. He is the only Associate A.D. in school history after becoming the first to assume the newly-created full-time position in 2004.
With over 20 years as a member of the Gannon family, Sherman was the pioneer of Gannon water polo after starting both the women’s and men’s programs from scratch and moving them from club status to the varsity level in 2001. He coached the women’s program for 14 seasons and the men’s program for 12 campaigns.
Of the two programs’ combined first 29 years of varsity-level existence, Sherman had been the head coach for 26 of those years. He accumulated 312 career water polo victories, finishing with 175 wins as the women’s head coach and 137 for the men. Sherman reached double digits in victories 11 times with the women and nine times for the men.
His numerous accolades include being named Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Western Division Women’s Coach of the Year twice, receiving the honor in 2002 and 2007. Sherman also earned CWPA Division II Men’s Water Polo Championship Coach of the Year for the first time in 2014.
One of only two coaches in the history of the Gannon water polo programs, Sherman guided his teams numerous times to the CWPA Eastern Championships which are the equivalent to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) regionals in other sports. The women’s program was 9-1 all-time in the CWPA Division II Championships, winning the first three titles. Sherman was at his best during local rivalries. His water polo programs were 49-0 all-time against Penn State Behrend (Men 30-0 / Women 19-0) and 32-33 all-time against Mercyhurst University (Men 16-18 / Women 16-15).
Sherman began his career at Gannon as an assistant swimming and diving coach under former Gannon head coach Rick Goerlitz, before being appointed head women’s and men’s swimming coach in the summer of 1997. The men’s program had four consecutive winning seasons while the women’s program produced winning records in four of Sherman’s last five campaigns. Both squads went 10-1 during Sherman’s last season in 2004-05.
The Erie, Pa., native was standout in both swimming and water polo for Tech Memorial during his high school career before graduating in 1980. He then moved on to become a member of the Slippery Rock water polo team that finished eighth at the NCAA National Championships in 1984. Sherman later served as an assistant student coach for the Slippery Rock men’s swimming team, and also has experience as the Cathedral Prep assistant swimming and water polo coach. He has 31 years of involvement with aquatics and pool management as a coach, instructor, swimmer and lifeguard.
Sherman and his wife Chrisie have three children, Cara, Kimmy and Cody. All three children are graduates of Gannon. In addition, Kimmy spent time as the University’s gameday cheerleading coach and Cody was a four-year letterwinner for the men’s water polo team.
For more information regarding the Erie County Aquatics Hall of Fame Induction Dinner, please visit the organization’s website at https://www.ecahf.org.
Release courtesy Gannon University Athletics Communications
