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In his six seasons as the
Cerritos College men’s water polo coach, Joe
Abing has brought the Falcon program to the
same level as the elite programs in the
state. In each of his six years, he has led
the team to the Southern California Regional
Playoffs. Last year, they came in third
place in the South Coast Conference and
finished with a 23-8 record and were
defeated in the second round of the
playoffs. In 2006 and 2007, they advanced to
the second round, but were eliminated one
game away from a shot at advancing to the
state tournament. From 2004-05, Abing
coached his teams to the state tournament,
while in 2004 they were the Southern
California Runner-up. For his efforts, Abing
was named the South Coast Conference Coach
of the Year and the Southern California
Co-Coach of the Year. In his first year
(2003), the team posted a 17-13 record and
reached the regional playoffs. Along the
way, they won the Saddleback Tournament for
the first time in school history. Of their
13 losses that year, eight of them were by
one or two goals.
Coach Abing anticipates another strong
season in 2009, with a strong recruiting
class and many returnees. Before Coach
Abing’s arrival, the Falcon water polo team
was struggling, but his leadership has made
for a drastic change within the program. In
addition to an overall winning record of
127-66, Coach Abing’s teams have produced 11
All-Americans. Along with his water polo
duties, Abing also serves as the men's
swimming coach and has had great success
with the swim team. Abing was named the
conference men’s swimming Coach of the Year
in both 2005 & 2007.
Abing came to Cerritos College after
spending two seasons as the head coach at
Ventura College. He did a solid job with the
Pirates, leading them to a 21-11 record in
2002 and helped them advance to the second
round of the Southern California Regional
Playoffs both seasons. In addition to his
duties at Ventura College, he was the
swimming coach at Ventura High School since
1995. He also handled the water polo duties
at Ventura High until 2000, before taking
the job at Ventura College.
Abing came in with great credentials and a
solid playing background. When he took over
the Ventura High water polo team, they were
coming off a 3-19 campaign. By the time he
left, Abing had guided his teams to three
Channel League championships, two CIF Finals
Championship appearances, coached six
All-Americans and was named the CIF Coach of
the Year in 2000. He also served as the
All-County All-Star Coach in 1998 and 1999.
As the swimming coach, he led the school to
their first two Channel League titles in
their history, had seven All-Americans and
one CIF champion.
Abing played water polo and competed in
swimming at South Pasadena High, where he
started on the 1989 CIF Championship water
polo team. While in high school, he was
named All-League, All-CIF and was named to
the San Gabriel Valley All-Star Team. He
moved on to Cuesta College, where he played
water polo and swam for Terry Bowen, who
swam and played water polo at Cerritos
College. As a freshman, the Cougars finished
second in the state and posted a 32-2
record. Abing decided to no longer compete
athletically when he moved on to UCLA, where
he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology
with a minor in Social Science in 1995. In
2002, he graduated from Azusa Pacific with a
“Masters in Education with an emphasis in
Physical Education.” In addition to his
duties with the men’s aquatics programs,
Abing also teaches a full load of physical
education classes.
JOE ABING’S
WATER POLO RECORD
YEAR
RECORD
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
2003
17-13 SoCal
Qualifier;
2004 26-7
State Qualifier; 2nd Place SoCal;
2005 23-17
State Qualifier, 3rd Place SoCal;
2006 19-11
SoCal Qualifier; 3rd Place SCC
Tournament; 3rd Place SCC
2007 19-10
SoCal Qualifier; 2nd Place SCC
Tournament; 2nd Place SCC
2008 23-8
SoCal Qualifier; 3rd Place SCC
Tournament; 2nd Place SCC
TOTAL
127-66 |
