Frank takes over SHP girls’ polo program

“[Frank is] an accomplished head coach who’s got both the experience and temperament to keep the program moving forward,” SHP Assistant Principal of Athletics Frank Rodriguez said in a press release. “The majority of our girls have played for him at one point or another over the past few years and they are absolutely thrilled that he’ll be on the pool deck directing them next fall.”

This will be Frank’s first high school head coaching job, but he has been working as a head coach with the Stanford Water Polo Club since 2012 where he runs the U16 boys’ team. His 2016 and 2017 squads were both crowned Junior Olympic champions.

But having been around the school’s water polo programs, both boys’ and girls’, gives Frank the confidence he can continue SHP’s success. Under Burke, the Gators won nine Central Coast Section Division II titles in a row, from 2007 to 2016. Last season, SHP finished runner-up to Leland in the inaugural CCS Open Division final.

“The work of the athletic department and the coaches before me, namely Jon Burke, have created an amazing platform to work with outstanding student-athletes,” Frank said in press release. “I look forward to building on what has already been established to create an environment where student-athletes can thrive both in the pool and out.”

Frank is a 2005 graduate of Aragon High School, where he starred in both water polo and swimming, earning Daily Journal Boys’ Swimmer of the Year honors his senior year. He parlayed that into a polo and swimming career at UC Irvine, where he became a three-time Academic All-American.

“[Frank] is absolutely the right person to assume this leadership role in our water polo program,” Rodriguez said.