Our Coaching Staff
Carroll Vaughan
Head Coach
Coach Carroll is the head coach for the Riptides Water Polo Club as well as the boys' and girls' varsity water polo head coach at Gulliver Prep High School. Carroll won the USA Water Polo Doc Hunkler (National Coach of the Year) award in 2010 and has won regional awards such as Monte Notzkowski, Sandy Nitta, Bill Barnett, and Brenda Villa multiple times. She has been honored with the Olympic Development Program (ODP) Regional Coach of the Year award for her outstanding leadership and hard work in the Olympic Development Program. She has been asked to coach on the National Team staff. Riptides has also won Club of the Year for the Southeast Zone.
At the high school level, Coach Carroll has won 6 state championship titles at Gulliver Prep (girls in 2013 and boys in 2012, 2014, 2019, 2021, and 2024) and has 5 runner-up placements. She's been both the Miami Herald Coach of the Year and the Dairy Farmer Coach of the Year on both the female and male side numerous times. The Miami Herald has also put her in the running for Coach of the Year for All Sports twice. She is a 2024 Gulliver Prep Hall of Fame inductee. She also led Florida International University to a national runner-up finish in 2009.
Hunter Pelletier
Assistant Head Coach
Hunter is a life long Riptide where he has been swimming and playing water polo since he was a child. He earned a BA in Kinesiology, Exercise Science & Human Performance from Whittier College where he also played on their water polo team. He currently serves as the aquatics manager at Gulliver Schools.
Chase Vaughan
Assistant Coach
Chase Vaughan is one of our assistant coaches for the Riptides water polo club who coaches out of our Gulliver and Cutler Ridge locations and has been coaching with us for 17 years. Chase has coached at many levels, helping both FIU and UM CWPA club teams, has been a middle school and high school head coach, and is currently an assistant coach at Gulliver Prep. He graduated from Miami Palmetto Sr high where he played water polo and swam for all 4 years. As a junior and senior he was a Miami Herald 2nd Team All-Dade selection and won the Greater Miami Athletic Conference Championship as a senior. Chase attended Florida International University and played club water polo under the CWPA. As a player, he was selected to the 2009 and 2010 First Team All Conference and the 2010 First Team All-American.
Alex Martinez
Assistant Coach
Alicia Pelletier
Assistant Coach
Chris Arias
Assistant Coach
Chris Arias has been part of the Riptides family since 2002. In 2006 he was named Dade County high school boys "coach of the year". He is a very accomplished water polo player with many recognitions. He was 1st team All Dade, 5th team All American, and MVP during his senior year in high school. He made the South East Zone team 2 years in a row. He started the FIU water polo team in his sophomore year in college. In 2004 he made first team SE conference, in 2005 he was MVP and made 3rd team All American and made the All tournament team at the Nationals. In 2006 he was named South East conference MVP and led his team to a 5th place finish at the nationals.
Ralph Quintero
Assistant Coach
Ralph Quintero has been with the Riptides since 2012 and is both a coach and water polo parent. He is also an assistant water polo coach at Gulliver Prep High School. He was recently recognized by USA Water Polo with the Brent Bohlender Distinguished Coach award. Ralph played water polo throughout high school as starting goalkeeper for Christopher Columbus High School as well as throughout his college years. He has a life-long passion for the sport of water polo and really enjoys teaching the fundamentals of the sport to newcomers.
Juan Guapacha
Assistant Coach
AJ Alfonso
Assistant Coach