{"id":652648,"date":"2026-08-28T11:54:18","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T18:54:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=652648"},"modified":"2026-08-28T11:54:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T18:54:18","slug":"water-polo-coaching-carousel-sends-ikaika-aki-to-hawaii-dustin-litvak-to-loyola-marymount","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/water-polo-coaching-carousel-sends-ikaika-aki-to-hawaii-dustin-litvak-to-loyola-marymount\/","title":{"rendered":"Water Polo Coaching Carousel Sends Ikaika Aki to Hawaii, Dustin Litvak to Loyola Marymount"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Water Polo Coaching Carousel Sends Ikaika Aki to Hawaii, Dustin Litvak to Loyola Marymount<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The water polo coaching carousel kicked off last week has added two new changes this week. After <strong>James Robinson-O\u2019Brien<\/strong> stepped down from Hawaii to take <a href=\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/ucla-hires-james-robinson-obrien-as-womens-water-polo-head-coach\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the women\u2019s head coaching job at UCLA<\/a>, Hawaii hired <strong>Ikaika Aki<\/strong> away from Loyola Marymount. LMU then hired Princeton men\u2019s coach <strong>Dustin Litvak.<\/strong> <strong>Derek Ellingson<\/strong> is the interim coach for the Tigers.<\/p>\n<p>Aki is the fifth head coach in the Rainbow Warriors history. He spent four years at LMU, earning Golden Coast Conference Coach of the Year each of the last two years, leading the Lions to consecutive titles and berths in the National Collegiate Women&#8217;s Water Polo Championship. The 2025 bid was the first since 2012.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I am incredibly honored and humbled to return home to lead the University of Hawai&#8217;i women&#8217;s water polo program,&#8221; Aki said <a href=\"https:\/\/hawaiiathletics.com\/news\/2026\/8\/25\/womens-water-polo-ikaika-aki-named-rainbow-wahine-water-polo-head-coach.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">in a press release<\/a>. &#8220;I want to thank Matt Elliott and Jim Stein for this tremendous opportunity. As someone who grew up here, I know exactly what it means to represent this state and this community. The Rainbow Wahine have established a remarkable standard of excellence, and I look forward to working with these talented student-athletes to build upon that strong foundation and take this program to even greater heights.&#8221;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/category\/water-polo\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Water Polo News<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Aki posted a 70-20 record at LMU, including a 20-0 GCC regular-season mark. The Lions were 23-5 last year. He has experience on the islands as a 2006 graduate of Honolulu\u2019s Punahou School.<\/p>\n<p>Aki played at Loyola Marymount, scoring 105 goals and 109 assists. The latter figure was second in program history, sand he\u2019s LMU\u2019s all-time record-holder in steals (176) and blocks (119). He spent two seasons as an assistant for LMU\u2019s men\u2019s and women\u2019s program, then was the head coach at San Clemente High School.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We are thrilled to welcome Ikaika back home to Hawai&#8217;i,&#8221; Hawaii athletic director <strong>Matt Elliott<\/strong> said. &#8220;His proven track record of building a championship-caliber program at LMU, combined with his deep roots in our local community, makes him the perfect leader for the Rainbow Wahine as we look to build upon our legacy of success.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Litvak resigned <a href=\"https:\/\/goprincetontigers.com\/news\/2026\/8\/27\/dusty-litvak-resigns-as-head-mens-water-polo-coach-derek-ellingson-to-serve-as-interim-head-coach\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">from Princeton<\/a> to take over at LMU. He posted a 162-65 record in seven seasons at Princeton, with a 58-12 mark in the Northeast Water Polo Conference. The Tigers men&#8217;s team won six NWPC titles, made six NCAA tournaments and made the NCAA Final Four in 2023. He was also an assistant for the women\u2019s team from 2018-24.<\/p>\n<p>Litvak has California experience at Agoura High School, Occidental College and UCLA, as part of the 2014 men\u2019s national championship coaching staff and the 2017 NCAA runner-up women\u2019s team.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;To return to Los Angeles and to be entrusted with the continued development of LMU&#8217;s fast rising and competitive women&#8217;s water polo program is a dream come true for myself and my family,\u201d Litvak said <a href=\"https:\/\/lmulions.com\/news\/2026\/8\/27\/litvak-announced-as-head-womens-water-polo-coach.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">in a LMU release.<\/a> \u201cWe have been warmly welcomed and well-supported through the process of this immediate and exciting transition&#8230; Heading into this season, I look forward to working with Sarah, our student-athletes, alumni, and supporters to pursue championships while fostering the development of the remarkable young women on this team who represent LMU with pride.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Litvak\u2019s appointment keeps associate head coach <strong>Sarah Kreiser<\/strong> in place.<\/p>\n<p>In Princeton, Ellingson takes over as the interim coach while a national search is conducted. <strong>Huw Helman<\/strong> remains his assistant for both the men\u2019s and women\u2019s teams. Ellingson has been the head coach of the women\u2019s team since 2019, with a 148-46 record, and has been on staff at Princeton since 2004.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Water Polo Coaching Carousel Sends Ikaika Aki to Hawaii, Dustin Litvak to Loyola Marymount The water polo coaching carousel kicked off last week has added two new changes this 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