Coaches

Coach Hayes Vertulfo

Coach Hayes started coaching at South Eugene in 2016, and as of October 2026 he has coached over 250 wins, including taking teams to the Oregon State Championships year after year. 

He is the Head Coach for the South Eugene Boys and the South Eugene Girls teams, as well as the Head Coach for Eugene City Water Polo and for the Cadet Team for the USA Water Polo Olympic Development Team for the Northwest Zone. 

Coach Hayes played high school water polo at South Eugene and college water polo at Chapman University. Outside of coaching hours, he is a substitute teacher for Eugene schools, with a special interest in mathematics. And he is always scouting for potential new water polo recruits!

Coach Matt Hauge - Assistant Coach

Coach Matt started playing water polo in middle school in Santa Rosa CA and played high school water polo at Redmond High School and club water polo at the University of Arizona. He played center at every level. Matt founded the water polo program at Willamette High School and served as the head coach and also was an assistant coach for Eugene City Water Polo. He later became the Head Coach for the Bend Waves taking the team to their first Junior Olympics and coached the boys team at Westview High School. When he is not on the pool deck Matt works as an insurance broker in Eugene, lifts, gets outdoors and spends time with his wife, son and new baby!

Coach Sydney DiMarco - Assistant Coach

Sydney played water polo at South Eugene for four years and with Eugene City Water Polo for eight years. Sydney recently graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a bachelors in science in Chemistry. She is applying for medical school this upcoming year to become a doctor. Recent accomplishments include coaching the 14U ECWP team, running a marathon, knitting a blanket and completing a 5 gallon jug pyramid.