Peter Ward Position: Head Coach Experience: 7th Year

Head coach Peter Ward was hired at George Mason in 1998 to build and develop the Patriots' swimming and diving program, which was preparing for its debut during the 1999-2000 season, and his time and effort are paying off after seven seasons.

For the 2005-06 campaign, the men's squad posted an overall record of 11-1 in regular season dual meets and did not lose in CAA competition (7-0). On the women's side, the Patriots recorded a 9-4 overall record and a 4-3 mark in CAA competition. The men's team earned a second place finish at the CAA Championships for the third straight year, while the women garnered a third place finish.

Mason had six individual CAA champions in 2006, including Tom Koucheravy who set a new pool, team, CAA Meet and a CAA top performance record in the 1,650 free. Koucheravy was also named CAA Men's Swimmer of the Year and earned the Outstanding Swimmer of the CAA Championships award.

During the 2004-05 season, each squad recorded a flawless conference dual meet record of 7-0, while the women concluded the year with an 8-2 overall record and the men headed into the CAA Championships with an 8-1 overall mark. The Patriot women won its fourth-straight league title, while the men's team mirrored its effort from the previous season as Mason earned a second place finish. At the CAA Championship, Mary Campioli earned the honor of Most Outstanding Female Diver.

In addition, Ward was named CAA co-Men's Coach of the Year for the second time in his career. Campioli was named CAA Female Diver of the Year, while Tom Koucheravy was tabbed as the conference Male Swimmer of the Year. Amanda Fielding earned CAA Female Rookie Diver of the Year and Stephen Lepsch was named league Rookie Diver of the Year on the men's side.

Ward and his staff coached six CAA champions and the Patriots won 11 total events at the conference championships in 2005.

After recording an overall dual meet record of 7-3 (3-2 CAA) in 2003-04, the women's team captured its third-straight conference title, while the men (7-2, 4-1) earned its best finish in school history at the CAA Championships at second. In addition, Kouchervary was named male CAA Rookie Swimmer of the Year, while Jamie Downing earned women's conference Diver of the Year for her performance during the 2003-04 campaign.

During the conference meet, which was held at the George Mason Aquatic and Fitness Center for the fifth consecutive season, Patriot athletes won a total of seven championships, which included four on the women's side and three on the men's team.

At the close of the 2002-03 season, Ward received CAA co-Women's Coach of the Year honors, along with CAA Men's Coach of the Year honors and also earned conference coach of the year on the women's side in 2001-02.

Ward has coached 23 All-America athletes, including two-time honoree in Koucheravy who earned it in both the 1,650 free and the 500 free this past season. Prior to Koucheravy, Lauren Stinnett (2001-02), became the first Mason Swimming and Diving athlete to attain the accolade. He has also coached a total of 51 CAA champions, 18 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) champions, nine Olympic Trial qualifiers, two Southeastern Conference title winners and one Southwest Conference champion.

Before arriving at Mason, Ward was the swimming head coach at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP). In three seasons there, he compiled a 30-2 women's record - including back-to-back undefeated seasons in 1995-96 (9-0) and 1996-97 (8-0) - and a 20-10 mark with the men. His benchmark season at IUP occurred in 1997-98, when the women's team finished seventh and the men's team finished 11th at the NCAA Division II Championships.

The IUP women's team placed second at the PSAC meet in each of Ward's three years as head coach, and he was honored as both PSAC Coach of the Year and Coach of the Meet in 1998. The IUP men's team went 11-1 that same season and finished second at the PSAC Championships. A native of Toronto, Ontario, Ward began his coaching career as an assistant at his alma mater, the University of Arkansas. He worked as the assistant swim coach from 1991-95, and he was responsible for the distance and middle-distance swimmers. During his time there, three Razorback swimmers he coached won conference championships.

As a competitive athlete, Ward was a four-year letterwinner for Arkansas and the 1986-87 Razorback team captain, but his success wasn't limited to just the collegiate ranks. 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 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 an All-American at Arkansas, an international medal winner and an Olympic finalist, have two daughters, Rebecca (11) and Rachel (9). They all reside in Fairfax.