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. Coach Carroll was recently 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's led her teams to numerous championship titles including the 2012 boys' water polo team and 2013 girls' water polo team state champions.
Chase Vaughan
Assistant Coach
Chase Vaughan is the assistant head coach for the Riptides water polo club and the head coach for Riptides swimming. In addition he is the head swim and water polo coach for Palmetto High School. He graduated from Miami Palmetto Sr high where he played water polo and swam for all 4 years. As a junior and senior he made the Miami Herald's 2nd Team All-Dade selection and won the Greater Miami Athletic Conference Championship as a senior. As a player, he was selected to the 2009 and 2010 First Team All Conference and the 2010 First Team All-American from FIU.
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.
Hunter Pelletier
Assistant 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.
Chelsea Johnson
Assistant Coach
Chelsea Johnson is a Ransom Everglades School graduate ’14, where she swam and played water polo all four years. Four-time state champion in water polo; one-time state champion in swimming. Three- time first team All-Dade honors for water polo; 2 time all American selection. 2011 Cadet National Team member. She played water polo Division I for Princeton University 2014-2018. CWPA Champion Team 2015. Second Team All-CWPA 2016. CWPA Defensive player of the week 2016. CWPA Championship All-Tournament First Team 2018. CWPA All-Conference Second Team 2018.
Jake Hudson
Assistant Coach
Jake Hudson has been with the Riptides family for over 20 years and he is one of the swim coaches for the Riptides swim program and is also a lifeguard at cutler ridge pool.
Alex Gonzalez
Assistant Coach
Alex is a 4-year varsity swimmer who was also a State qualifier. He has been a club swimmer since the age of ten and a Southern United States sectional qualifier. Prior to joining Riptides, Alex coached the Southern Wahoos Aquatics team for 1 year.
Ashlyn Pelletier
Assistant Coach
Ashlyn Pelletier has been a Riptide since she was 2 years old. She has been coaching summer swim for the past two years and has volunteered for Riptides since the 6th grade. She swam with Riptides until high school, then went on to swim and play water polo at the varsity level at Gulliver Prep. She has played club water polo with Riptides since she was 11, and has played in 4 Junior Olympics with the team. In her junior year at Gulliver, her team was named runner-up at states. She has been recognized with accolades such as making 3rd team All-Dade in 2018, and USA Water Polo 2016-2017 Academic All-American with outstanding achievement. In her senior year, she earned the Most Dedicated Player award, and the Gulliver Prep Sportsmanship Award. Now, Ashlyn swims club and plays collegiate club water polo at Syracuse University.
J.D. Garcia
Assistant Coach
J.D. is an accomplished water polo player and an active member of our Open Men's team.