Head Coaches

Heather Coulson has spent the majority of her life in and around the pool. She attended the University of Tennessee on a full swimming scholarship. Heather was a nationally-ranked, All-American swimmer for the Volunteers and competed in the 1988 Olympic Trials in the 400 Individual Medley and was also World ranked. The 2007/2008 season represents her eleventh year as the Owner and Head Coach of Mako.

In the past, Heather also served as the Head Swim and Dive Coach of the Robinson High School for five seasons - leading the team to a 90% winning dual-meet record and three consecutive Patriot District Championships titles in 1996, 1997, and 1998. She also coached the Commonwealth summer league team for two seasons, including one undefeated season in Division 5 in 1996 and 1997.

Heather founded the Mako team in 1996 with a handful of swimmers from both Robinson High School and Commonwealth swim teams. Her philosophy is built on her own collective swimming experiences. In 1998, Mako joined Potomac Valley Swimming as a USA Competitive swim team. Today, the team is comprised of nearly 600 swimmers, with a dozen coaches, and trains exclusively in the finest swimming facility in the Northern Virginia region, the George Mason Aquatics and Fitness Center in Fairfax. Heather takes great pride in the team's unwavering commitment to developing outstanding athletes in a positive, fun and family-oriented environment.

Heather holds a bachelor's degree in early childhood development from the University of Tennessee and a master's degree in special education from the College of William and Mary. Heather continues swimming competitively for the Patriot Master's Swim Team, where she holds several individual and relay records. She was also Master's National Champion in the 50 Meter Backstroke in Hawaii in 2002.

Heather has two children, Logan (11) and Ryan (8), and resides in Chantilly.

Contact Heather via E-mail.
 

Senior Coach

Peter Ward is the Senior Coach at the Fairfax campus leading the National, Senior and Senior Sprint programs. Peter has also served as the Head Coach of the GMU collegiate team for the past six seasons, where he has lead the Patriots to four straight Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) league titles, received CAA "Coach of the Year" honors four times, produced seven Olympic Trial qualifiers, 22 All-America athletes, and 42 CAA champions and 18 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) champions.

A world-class swimmer, Ward was a member of the Canadian National Swimming Team from 1979-88. He placed seventh in the 200 butterfly at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, and was a silver medalist at the 1987 Pan American Games. He held the Canadian national record in the 200-meter butterfly from 1981-84, and was the Canadian champion in that event in 1981, 1984 and 1986.

Ward, who is a member of both the American Swimming Coaches Association and the College Swimming Coaches Association of America, has also been involved with Special Olympics, and also assisted with the Washington D.C.-area bid for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games.

He and his wife, Cheryl, who was also an All-American swimmer at Arkansas, an international medal winner and an Olympic finalist, have two daughters, Rebecca (10) and Rachel (8). The Wards reside in Fairfax.

Contact Peter via E-mail.
 

Head Age Group Coach

Mike Cook is a native Northern Virginian having grown up in Falls Church. Mike has 20+ years of USS and summer league coaching experience. He has been involved with the NVSL having swum at Woodley for 12 years, moving up to coach the team for 3 years and then moving onto Lee Graham, where he has been coaching for 20 years.

Mike has coached all ages but has concentrated his expertise in age group development. His coaching philosophy focuses on the development of a well rounded swimmer, a swimmer who is proficient in all 4 strokes. His goal is to help each swimmer develop a love of the sport and to challenge them to realize their own swimming potential. Mike is an active member of the American Swim Coaches Association, and continues to educate himself on new training methods and techniques that he incorporates in his practices.

Mike leads the Junior High Performance and Age Group High Performance programs in Fairfax.

Mike’s formal education includes a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Recreation from Virginia Commonwealth University. He is a former college and club rugby player and continues to train for local triathlons, and a graduate of Falls Church High School where he helped start the school swim team.

Contact Mike via E-mail.

 

Assistant Coaches

Beth Bedell Beth Bedell enters her third year as an age group coach with the Mason Makos. Before Makos, she spent 20+ summers teaching younger children to swim.

Beth enjoys the challenge of working with age group swimmers (10 and under) and helping them develop their strokes. She continues to update her techniques and skills training by attending seminars that provide the most updated information on age group swimming, strokes, nutrition and psychology. She is certified by American Swim Coaches Association as a level II coach, and she has her Water Safety Instructor certification as well. She spent over 15 years swimming in California competing for age group, high school and college teams.

Beth has a bachelor’s degree from Cal State Long Beach in Health Science with a specialty in Radiation Therapy.

Contact Beth via e-mail.

 
Scot Budde joins the Mako coaching staff for his second season as the Senior Prep Coach is Fairfax. Scot is also an Assistant Coach with George Mason's swimming & diving programs. He also served as head coach this past season of the NVSL Virginia Run team. Scot recently joined Mason's staff after serving as the Aquatics Director at the Gilman School in Baltimore from 2000-04. While at the Gilman School, Scot was a physical education teacher, pool operator and also handled several coaching responsibilities of all levels for both swimming and water polo. He was also an assistant swim coach for the Mariners Swim Club (2000-04), where he designed workouts for ages 6-18 and also helped to organize several Mariner Invitationals. In addition, Scot brings with him some collegiate coaching experience as he was the head water polo coach at the University of Maryland (2003-04) where he coached both beginning, as well as experienced athletes.

Scot was a member of Maryland's varsity swim team from 1995-99 and served as team captain in both 1997 and '99. He continues to compete in Master's water polo today. Scot was a Presidential scholar at Maryland (1995-99), and was also named to the athletic honor roll on four occasions. A native of Columbia, Md., Scot graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Maryland in 1999.

Contact Scot via E-mail.
 

Todd Fisher is a Northern Virginia native -- having grown up in Fairfax City. He has 20+ years of coaching experience USA Competitive-level swimmers, as well as summer league and high school programs. As a youngster, Todd swam his entire career at Mosby Woods and Starlit Aquatic Club in Fairfax.

Todd attended Marshall University in West Virginia, and earned his bachelor's degree in Government and Politics. Later, he returned to Fairfax and earned another bachelor's degree in Public Administration at GMU. Aside from earning degrees, Todd really enjoys working with young people, and is very excited to be a part of the Mako program.

 
Erica Locher enters her first season as a Mako coach. This past summer, she coached with the College Park Aquatic Club.

Erica is currently a Junior at George Mason University, where she is pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science. She is entering her third season as a member of the GMU women's swim team, as well.

Prior to attending GMU, Erica was a member of the Tidewater Aquatic Club and Hickory High School Swim Team in her hometown of Chesapeake, Virginia.

Contact Erica via email.
 

Angie Niezgoda returns for her third season coaching with the Makos. As a child, Angie was a swimmer and diver in the NVSL, and came back to the sport as a Masters swimmer (triathlon training) as a young adult. Angie founded the Kingsbrooke Sea Lions in 1997 and served as its Head Coach and President. Angie has also coached for several USA competitive swim teams in Prince William and Fauquier Counties.

For the last 15 years, Angie has taught lessons at several local facilities including the Freedom Center, Oak Marr, Herndon, FAST, and holds certifications in WSI, LTI and Coach's Safety. Angie graduated from Virginia Tech with a degree in Political Science. She currently manages her kids' schedules and her husband's consulting business.

 
Amanda Rigano is entering her second season as a Makos coach. She previously coached a summer league and has taught private lessons for the past five years. Amanda is currently a Junior at George Mason university, where she is pursuing a degree in Administration of Justice with a minor in History.

Amanda swam competitively from 1st-12th grade. Past teams include the YMCA, a local country club, Trident swim club, and her highschool.
 
Matt Salerno enters his third season as a Mako coach. He is currently the Head Coach at Fairfax High School as well as the NVSL Villa Gorillas. He is beginning his fourth year as a Fairfax County teacher, and is in his first year as a sixth-grade teacher at Providence Elementary.

Matt graduated from the College of William and Mary in 2003 with a Bachelors of Science degree in psychology and Elementary Education. As a member of the Tribe swim team, he swam for four seasons, and was the co-captain as a Senior.

Prior to coaching in Northern Virginia, Matt was the Head Coach for two seasons at the Queens Lake Swim Club in Williamsburg and the Chapel Gate Swim Club in Pittsburgh.

Contact Matt via email.
 
Brolin Walters enters his first season as a Makos coach. He has previously served as an assistant coach for the Hayden Village swim team, and also coached youth basketball.

Brolin graduated from Fairfax High School, where he was a member of the swim and dive, football and lacrosse teams. He served as Co-Captain of the Fairfax swim and dive team, and qualified for the Regional Championship twice and State Championship during his senior year.

Brolin is now a freshman at George Mason University.

Contact Brolin via email.
 
Junior Assistant Coaches

Meghan Thompson returns as a Junior Assistant Coach working with the Mini Mako swimmers this season. She is a junior at Westfield High School and a member of the Makos Senior Team in Fairfax. During the summers, Meghan provides swim lessons at Chantilly National in Centreville.
 

Review Facilities