Peter Asch is in his third season as the head coach of the California men's water polo program, leading the Golden Bears to a 31-19 overall mark and back-to-back third place national rankings. Last season, Cal was 17-8 and ended the year falling to eventual NCAA champion UCLA, 6-5, in the finals of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament. Asch also serves as Cal's women's water polo coach where he has amassed a 79-25 record (.760) and was named the MPSF Coach of the Year in 2000. Under Asch's direction, the Bear women finished second nationally in 1998 and fourth nationally in 1999 and 2000. In the summer of '98, Asch also helped guide the Cal women's water polo club team to the national title at the U.S. Senior National Championship at the Navel Academy in Annapolis, MD. Asch has a long history of excellence as he earned All-America honors in water polo at Cal three straight years from 1967-69. He stood out on the 1969 Bear team that finished second in the first ever NCAA men's water polo championship. Asch was Cal's team captain in 1968 and '69 and a member of the 1972 USA Olympic team and the 1971 and '75 Pan American Games teams. He helped the United States win a bronze medal in the 1972 Olympics and a Pan Am Games gold medal in '71. Asch was also a part of the bronze medal U.S. team at the 1973 World Championship, and was the U.S. Water Polo Player of the Year and the sport's Sullivan Award Nominee in 1975. He is a 1984 inductee in the U.S. Water Polo Hall of Fame, a 1987 inductee in the International Water Polo Hall of Fame and a 1997 inductee in the California Athletic Hall of Fame. Following a distinguished college and amateur career, Asch was equally successful in the business world. He rose to the position of senior vice president of Bank of America before he retired after 22 years in the banking industry. Asch returned to the sport of water polo in 1994, coaching age-group girls' teams. He served as the head coach at Miramonte High School girls' teams from 1995 through '97, helping his squads capture a pair of North Coast Section titles. In addition, Asch had served as a part-time aide to former men's coach Steve Heaston for the Cal men's team each fall, as well. Asch, 54, lives in Orinda with his wife, Esther, and daughter, Katherine (16).

Peter Asch Position: Head Coach