When Gary Tameris founded the Milford swimming and water polo programs in 1989, he would've never imagined the heights it would reach over the next 33 years.
Tameris worked with both programs in a building with a pool and nothing else. Early on, he borrowed water polo balls and used a pair of trash cans with a broom in between to simulate a goal.
"We took our beatings upfront as a new program, but we kept working and eventually turned the corner and made Milford a state contender every year," Tameris said.
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Tameris, who led Milford boys water polo to state championships in 2006 and 2008, is set to retire in the spring after 44 years of coaching.
Tameris completed his eighth season as the Princeton boys swimming coach at the Division I district meet last weekend at Miami University. Tameris was named the Greater Miami Conference boys swimming coach of the year.
This spring, he will coach the Vikings boys water polo team before calling it a career. Princeton was the state runner-up last spring.
"You never have the perfect time to do it, because you don't want to leave a group of seniors hanging," Tameris said. "After 44 years, now's the time."
Tameris has more than 700 career water polo wins, coaching at Sycamore, Milford, Princeton and Loveland, along with the Moose Water Polo Team. Prior to starting the Milford program, he led Sycamore to a girls water polo state title in 1987.
He returned to Sycamore and led the Aviators to state runner-up finishes in 2012 and 2013, before joining Princeton a year later.
In January, Tameris was inducted into the Milford Athletics Hall of Fame.
Building Milford from the ground up to a pair of state champions with local talent was one of the highlights of his career.
"All of those kids I had were homegrown. We brought those kids in – that 2006 and 2008 group – and they were all 6-and-under. Those kids started with me and stayed all the way through and ended their career as state champions," Tameris said. "That's definitely a proud moment."
In water polo, Tameris coached multiple All-Americans and numerous All-Ohio selections. In swimming, the figures are even more, with more than 600 district-qualifiers and several All-Ohio selections, including three All-Americans.
Notable athletes include Elliott Keefer, a Milford graduate, who was a Big-Ten champion in the 100 breaststroke and later joined the 2010 Pan Pacific Championship Team and U.S. National Team.
Dan Matulis, a water polo standout, led Milford to a state championship as a freshman. He went on to play at Long Beach State, where he was a two-time All-American and scored 148 career goals.
Matulis served as an assistant water polo coach at Long Beach State and Golden West College before he was hired to be the head coach at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, California in 2020.
"To see that progress continue for those athletes, whether it's at the national level or even going to play club in college, gives me a lot of satisfaction," Tameris said.
Tameris won't completely leave the water, though. In addition to traveling with his wife, Heidi, and spending time with his three grandchildren, he plans to jump into officiating water polo down the road.
He will be free from the August-February grind of water polo and swimming, which will be a change.
"That'll be a nice change of pace," Tameris said. "It's gonna be nice to finally see daylight."
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