Pepperdine University Athletics

An International Swimming and Diving Hall of Famer, Nick Rodionoff's affiliation with Pepperdine spanned four decades. Rodionoff came to Pepperdine in 1974 to coach the men's swimming and diving team, yet his biggest accomplishment came in 1987, when he established the women's swimming and diving program. Despite being a new program, the Waves promptly went undefeated for five consecutive seasons.
 
As a head coach for the women's team from 2000-2018, Rodionoff helped guide the Waves to 14 top-five team finishes at the Pacific Collegiate Swim and Dive Conference (PCSC) Championships — including a runner-up finish in 2008. Individually, Rodionoff was a two-time PCSC Coach of the Year recipient.
 
Yet one of Rodionoff's greatest accomplishments was not winning an award. After the 2008 national recession forced Pepperdine to cut the women's swimming and diving program, Rodionoff helped rescue the team he once founded. Thanks to rallying former alumni and donors, Rodionoff was instrumental in reinstating the program in 2009. Without his efforts, the program wouldn't exist today.
 
Individually, Rodionoff guided seven women to 12 conference titles and four to six NCAA Championship berths. Jessica Mosbaugh earned back-to-back PCSC Division I Swimmer of the Year honors in 2014 and 2015, plus six other student-athletes were named PCSC Diver of the Year: Michelle Barker (2003), Amanda Pond (2009), Tiffany Martz (2011), Kristin Scribner (2012), Klair Korver (2013), and Sydney Newman (2017).
 
Rodionoff's teams routinely succeeded in the classroom, too. His teams won College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America All-Academic Team awards regularly, and three of his student-athletes won Pepperdine's Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards.
 
Rodionoff passed away in 2023 and will be inducted into the Hall of Fame posthumously. His wife Carrie will accept the award on his behalf.