The Whittier College Athletic’s Hall of Fame will be welcoming Cerritos College’s Women’s Water Polo and swimming coach Sergio Macias into its hall of fame this Friday.
“It’s always great to be acknowledged by your alma mater. So it’s going to be nice to see a lot of familiar faces that I haven’t seen in a lot of years,” Macias said.
Macias, whose in his ninth season as a coach at Cerritos, started back in 2005 when he joined the Cerritos College athletics department by becoming both the women’s water polo and women’s swimming coach.
Macias is no stranger to the water. As a student at Bell Gardens High School, Macias played part in getting his team to four consecutive league championships. As well as back to back California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) championships in 1995 and 1996.
As a high school student player, Macias earned CIF’s Most Valuable Player and is still currently the all-time leading goal scorer in CIF history with 706 goals scored during his high school career from 1993 to 1996.
Macias also currently holds the sixth place record for most goals in a season with a whopping 213 goals during his 1996 water polo season.
Shortly after graduating from Bell Gardens High School, Macias attended Whittier College where he then graduated in 2001 earning a Bachelor’s degree in Physical Education and Recreation.
As a student at Whittier College, Macias became the school’s first and only water polo player to receive Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference’s (SCIAC) Conference Player of the Year, as a sophomore student.
Macias said, “I think a lot of who I am today, as a coach, had to do a lot with my experience as a player at Whittier College. As well as the influence that I received from my team mates and my coaches and mentors.”
After graduating from Whittier College Macias then went on to receiving his Masters degree in Kinesiology in 2005 from the California State University of Los Angeles.
Shortly after receiving his Master’s that same year, Macias joined the Cerritos College athletic department.
From there, Macias led the women’s water polo team to Cerritos’ only state championship in 2008.
“There’s no regrets. You leave everything in the pool and that’s what I teach my kids. That this might be there last chance, their last year to be playing this sport. That they want to leave it all in the pool,” Macias said.
Then in 2009 Macias led his team to a 22 match winning streak. During the same year, Macias was named the women’s water polo State Coach of the Year and the South Coast Conference Coach of the Year.
In 2009, Macias had a great success with the women’s swimming team as the team won its first ever conference championship.
While in 2010, Macias earned both the women’s water polo team third place at the South Coast Conference. While placing second at the South Coast Conference for the women’s swimming team.
That same year, Macias and the women’s swimming teamed took home 11th place in the State Championships.
Macias did not stop there, in 2011 he once again led his team to its fourth conference championship where it advanced toward the playoff’s once more.
Additional accomplishments made by Macias were being named Coach of the year in 2003 by the Los Angeles Times. As well as Whittier Daily News’ Coach of the Year in 2004.
One of the few things Macias looks forward to is jumping back into getting his team in top shape, even after being inducted into the hall of fame.
“I think once I get to Friday the feelings will kick in, but for now I just have to focus on getting my team ready for our conference game on Wednesday against Pasadena.
“Friday is going to be a special moment for my self, for my family of course as well. But still the focus for the fall is still my team here. My job here at Cerritos College,” Macias said.
Sergio Macias will be inducted into Whittier College’s Hall of Fame this Friday.
