Meet Them All
DUJE GRUBISIC
PRESIDENT & CEO, HEAD COACH
14U/18U Girls
Duje Grubisic is a visionary leader in the world of water polo and aquatics. Born and raised in Croatia, Duje began his professional water polo career at the age of sixteen. His early experiences in one of Europe’s water polo powerhouses provided him with a solid foundation, which he later built upon during his collegiate career at Concordia University in the United States. Earning a full athletic scholarship, Duje was a three-time All-American and also earned Academic All-American honors during his time at Concordia University. His leadership qualities extended beyond the pool, culminating in a scholarship for his master’s degree and a role as a graduate assistant coach for Concordia’s men’s water polo team.
Duje’s coaching career is marked by remarkable success and accolades. As the founder, President, and CEO of Patriot Aquatics and head coach for both the 14U girls team and Beckman High School, he transformed the club from its humble beginnings into a nationally recognized powerhouse, now boasting over 300 athletes. His ability to develop both athletes and coaching staff has resulted in an organization known for both its competitiveness and its supportive, family-like atmosphere.
Throughout his career, Duje has personally achieved numerous prestigious titles, including:
- 2nd place in the 14U boys Platinum Division at the Junior Olympics
- 3rd place in the 10U coed Platinum Division at the Junior Olympics
- 10U boys and girls national champions
- 12U girls national champions
- 14U girls Cal Cup champions
- 12U and 14U girls Futures champions
- 18U boys Futures League Division 2 champions
In recognition of his dedication and skill, Duje has received several prestigious awards, including being named the Orange County Athletic Directors Association Coach of Character* in 2020 and OC Register Coach of the Year in 2023. His leadership guided both boys’ and girls’ teams to the semifinals of CIF Division 2, marking a historic achievement for the teams under his care.
Duje's educational background is as impressive as his coaching career. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business with a concentration in Accounting and Finance from Concordia University Irvine, a Master of Business Administration (MBA), a Master of Coaching and Athletic Administration, and a Master of Coaching and Exercise Science all from Concordia University Irvine. This robust academic foundation complements his professional experience, allowing him to manage and lead Patriot Aquatics with exceptional business acumen and coaching expertise.
Duje’s athletes have gone on to play for prestigious teams such as Stanford, UCI, USC, Berkeley, Harvard, MIT, UCSD, UC Merced, Concordia, LMU, Pomona Pitzer, Redlands, and Claremont. Under his guidance, his players have also won national championships in various divisions.
With his passion for developing well-rounded athletes, Duje is committed to nurturing talent both in and out of the pool. His approach to coaching emphasizes not only athletic excellence but also personal growth, character, and academic success. His athletes have gone on to compete at the highest levels, earning scholarships and national team placements.
Duje’s influence extends beyond the sport, as he continues to mentor young athletes, inspire his coaching peers, and lead Patriot Aquatics with an unwavering commitment to excellence and integrity.
TIJMEN EGBERTS
HEAD COACH
10U Coed
Coach Tijmen Egtberts was born and raised in The Netherlands. He started playing competitive water polo at the age of 8. His talent got recognized at Santa Rosa Junior College where he played for two years and was added to the coaching staff for one year as well. Tijmen continued his education at Concordia University where he played water polo for one year and was Senior Captain of the swim team his final year. He graduated in 2016 with a Bachelor’s degree in sports management. He also has a Master’s degree in coaching and athletic administration. As a coach, Tijmen has 12 years of experience and in 2017 he coached a 10U team that won the gold division at NJO’s, in 2019 his team got 3rd place and in 2021 Tijmen coached both 10u girls and 10u mixed to become national champions. That was the first time in usa waterpolo history two teams from the same club won JOs at the 10u level.
JEFF HAMILTON
ASSISTANT COACH
10U Coed
Coach Jeff has been with Patriot Water Polo since 2019 as an assistant 10u coach. From 1991-1995 Jeff played water polo with Canyon High School in Anaheim Hills. In 1994 he was selected to play with the USA Junior National team and then went on to win two back-to-back California State Championships with Golden West College. Since then, Jeff has continued to play water polo all over the country, even with the Navy Seals in Coronado. Jeff’s principal work is in physics, when he is not coaching or surfing, he can be found developing shot probability and data science models to help guide the 10u team to success.
IVAN MERCEP
HEAD COACH
12U Boys
MATT CALHOUN
HEAD COACH
12U Girls
Coach Matt Calhoun is from Visalia, CA in the central valley where he played water polo and swam for Mt. Whitney High School. After graduating he attended the College of the Sequoias for an associate’s degree, where he also swam, before transferring to UC Davis. At Davis he studied Psychology and played for the men’s club water polo team. Matt has been coaching water polo since the age of 19 beginning with the JV girls water polo team at Golden West High School. While in college he also coached the women’s club water polo B team and was president of the men’s club team for 2 years. Post-college Matt moved to Southern California and began assistant coaching for the Socal boy’s and girl’s 18U and 16U water polo teams.
BOJAN HRLEC
COACH
14U Boys
Bojan Hrlec was born and raised in Croatia, where he played for Kvarner and Primorje. He was a member of the Croatian Cadet/Junior Water Polo National Team (age 13-18). While studying at West Valley College, Bojan led the team to the state championship as the leading goal scorer and All American 2010/11 and 2011/12. While studying at the University of Califonia he was a member of the UCI Men’s Water Polo Team, NCAA Division 1 All American, and led UCI in scoring as a Junior with 63 goals. He graduated class of 2014. Bojan was 16U Assistant Coach, 12U, and 14U Head Coach from 2015 to 2017 at Del Mar Water Polo Club. As a Program Director at Del Mar Water Polo Club, he helped the club grow from 80 to 160 members, overlooked and coordinated all age groups and 10+ coaches, organized tournaments, year-long practice scheduling, as well as a club organization. He was also a 10U and 18U Head Coach and a club President until September 2018. Bojan was 12U and 18U Head Coach at La Jolla United Water Polo Club and assisted in strategically growing the club from 130 to 280 members in 1 year. Currently, coach Bojan is representing Patriot as the second year 12U head coach (finished 7th at JOs in his first year) as well as the assistant coach at University of California, Irvine.
BLAKE BORDERS
ASSISTANT COACH
14U
MILES
ASSISTANT COACH
14U Boys
From Irvine, Coach Miles has been playing water polo since the age of 8 years old. Growing up he played for Northwood Water Polo Club. Coach Miles attended Orange Lutheran High School where he won a CIF championship in 2016 and league titles in 2016 and 2019. This included multiple All-CIF team/Trinity league team nods. During his time at Orange Lutheran, Coach Miles also served as team captain for the 2018/2019 seasons.
Following a successful high school career, Coach Miles transitioned to playing and studying at UC San Diego. At UCSD, Coach Miles received an all-conference award in 2021and was team captain in 2023. Outside of the pool, Coach Miles graduated in 2024 with an International Business degree, and a Finance minor.
While playing and studying at UC San Diego, Coach Miles also coached for Del Mar Water Polo Club. At DMWPC, Coach Miles coached 12u, 14u, and 16u age groups from 2021 to 2024 winning 3 Junior Olympic titles (12u,14u, 14u) and 2 Futures Super Finals titles (12u, 16u). He was head of the 14u program from Fall 2022 to Summer 2024 which won consecutive JO titles. Coach Miles also serves as the assistant coach at Orange Lutheran High School (since Fall 2024).
NADJA NOVAKOVIC
HEAD COACH
16U Girls
ASSISTANT COACH Concordia University Women’s Water Polo
Nadja Novakovic is an accomplished water polo player and coach, originally from Belgrade, Serbia. She began her water polo journey with Club Tas2000 and quickly rose through the ranks. From 2014 to 2019, she played for Red Star Women’s Water Polo Club, where she became a 6-time National Champion. Nadja also represented the Serbian National Team from 2014 to 2023, competing at the highest levels internationally.
Nadja continued her athletic and academic career in the United States, first at West Valley College (2019-2021) and then at Cal State Long Beach (2021-2024), where she earned her degree in Psychology, specializing in Sport Psychology.
With a passion for coaching, Nadja has worked with youth water polo teams at Shore Aquatics Club (u10, u12, u14) and South Bay United (2023-2024). She is currently serving as the Assistant Coach for Concordia University’s Women’s Water Polo Team (2024-present), where she brings her wealth of experience and knowledge to inspire the next generation of athletes.
JOSE CORDERO
ASSISTANT COACH
14u Girls/16u Girls
18u Girls/18u Boys
18u Girls/18u Boys
Coach Jose was born in Costa Rica and moved to the United States in 2007. He began playing water polo at age 12 and spent most of his club seasons with SoCal. He played with Irvine High School from 2016-2020 where he was captain his senior year. After finishing his playing career, coach Jose decided to pursue a degree in cell biology and chemistry from Cal State Long Beach. He currently coaches alongside coach Tijmen at Irvine High School and hopes to use the lessons he has learned by playing and coaching in his future endeavors.
ROBERTO BARRERA
ASSISTANT COACH
GOALIE COACH
Roberto Barrera was born and raised in Mexico, where he started playing at age of eight. He is a current member of the Mexican Water Polo Senior National Team and Westcliff University Men’s Water Polo Team. At Westcliff University, Roberto is the current team captain, and he led Westcliff in blocks as a Sophomore with 216 saves. He will graduate in the class of 2024. Roberto was 14U Head Coach from 2019 to 2020 for Leones Water Polo Club at his hometown Guanajuato, Mexico. He was also 14U, 16U & 18U Assistant Coach at Costa Mesa Aquatics Club from 2020 until April 2021. Currently, coach Roberto is working for Patriot as a Goalie Coach for all boys and girls age groups. He has been certified by multiple coaching clinics such as the USA Water Polo Coaches Academy and the Barcelona International Water Polo Academy.
ETHAN SHIPMAN
HEAD COACH
16U Boys
TONY CHANOVE
ASSISTANT COACH
16U Boys
IVAN BUICH
HEAD COACH
18U BOYS
PRESLAV DJIPPOV
ASSISTANT COACH
18U Boys
Preslav Djippov is in his second season as a Head Men’s and Women’s Coach at Westcliff University in Irvine. He coached the club men’s water polo team at USC, before taking over the women’s water polo program at Columbia University, where his team won the New York State Division Championship in 2017.
At the same time, Djippov was coaching the junior and senior water polo teams at Greenwich Aquatics Club in Greenwich, CT. Coached the ODP Camp at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs 2017. Coached and prepared many national travel team players. Won the Gold division title at the National Junior Olympics 2019 with the 18U boys team in Orange County.
After relocating to the west coast, Djippov accepted coaching positions with the Del Mar Water Polo club in San Diego, as well as Canyon Crest Academy high school, coaching the Girls Varsity team CIF DIV1.
Before coming to the states in 2016, Djippov was the assistant coach of Water Polo Club Cherno More-1948 in Varna, Bulgaria.
A graduate from the University of Economics in Varna, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Statistics and Econometrics along with a Masters Degree in Finance, Djippov was a member of the Bulgarian Senior and Junior National water polo teams and won the Bulgarian National Championship in 2009 and 2010. Winner of the Bulgarian National Cup in 2011 and 2012.