Hartwick College Hall of Fame Member Megan Thomson to Lead New Zealand Women’s Team at 2025 FISU World University Games

A two-year starter as a center-forward for Hartwick during the program’s inaugural seasons in 2001 and 2002 under head coach Mike Maroney, the Wellington, New Zealand native quickly became the cornerstone of the Hawks’ women’s water polo program. She guided the team to a 48-23 record in two years, and was honored as an Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC) All-America after the 2001 (Honorable Mention) and 2002 (Second Team) seasons.

The 2001 and 2002 Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Northern Division Player of the Year along with claiming All-Northern Division First Team honors during both seasons, Thomson led Hartwick to consecutive Northern Division and CWPA New York Region titles as well as the 2002 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championship.

The 2001 and 2002 Hartwick Female Athlete of the Year, she joined the Hartwick Hall of Fame in 2002.

At the time of her induction, Thomson was the all-time leading scorer in the two-year history of the program with 182 goals and 52 assists for 234 points. She also finished her career with 180 drawn ejections.

Thomson played for her country at the 2001 FINA World Championships in Japan where she finished among the top 20 goalscorers in the tournament. She was the captain of the New Zealand Development Team in 2000 and played on her country’s Under-20National Team from 1996 to 1999. Thomson was also the co-captain of New Zealand’s Senior National Team at the Commonwealth Game Championships in Perth, Australia, in January 2006, finishing with a bronze medal. In 2003, she captained the national squad at the Olympic Qualification Series and was a member of the group that competed in the Olympic Qualification Tournament in Italy.

Thomson earned her bachelor’s degree in business in 2002 from Hartwick. In 2008, she graduated from the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Women’s Coaches Academy.

She began her coaching career as an assistant at Hartwick during the 2002-03 season  Thomson helped her alma mater claim second place at the CWPA Championship in 2002 (7-6 L to University of Michigan) with a 28-9 record and notch a 23-10 mark in 2003 for back-to-back CWPA Northern Division crowns under Maroney.

In 2004 under head coach Alan Huckins, she helped the Hawks claim the ECAC Championship, the Northern Division title and the squad’s first CWPA crown during a 33-10 season as the team finished in Fourth Place at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Championship hosted by Stanford University. Following a a Third Place finish at the 2005 CWPA Championship with a 28-9 record and another CWPA Northern Division Championship title, she helped guide Hartwick to the 2006 CWPA Championship with a 28-11 mark, another Northern Division title and a Sixth Place finish at the NCAA Championship hosted the University of California-Davis.

In her time as an assistant, Hartwick compiled a record of 112-40 prior to her departure on May 5, 2006, to take over as the third head coach in the history of the University of the Pacific women’s water polo team.

Inheriting a team that posted a 0-22 record in 2006, and following an inaugural 5-25 record in 2007, Thomson’s Tigers finished 4-27 in 2008 during the program’s final season as a member o the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF).

As a member of the newly formed Big West Conference in 2009, Thomson coached the Tigers to a 9-24 mark to continue a steady restructuring of the team.

In 2010, Pacific finished 24-9 for the inaugural winning season in team history as the squad claimed the regular season title and Third Place at the Big West Championship to conclude the year ranked No. 14 in the nation.