Ryan Pryor became the first water polo coach in Augustana history and is in his fifth season
leading the men's and women's programs. Pryor came to Augustana after a successful six-year
run as the women’s head coach at Virginia Military Institute. Under Pryor’s guidance both the
Men’s and Women’s teams have gotten off to impressive starts.
The women’s team has qualified for the USA Water Polo Division III National Championship in
each of its first four seasons and captured three consecutive CWPA championships from 2023-
25. The team has been ranked in the top 10 in the country for 65 consecutive weeks (through
the end of the 2025 season) and finished the 2024 season ranked No. 5. The team also record
6 wins over Division 1 and 2 programs between 2023-25.
The men’s team has won four consecutive MPSF East Championships from 2022-25 and
qualified for the USA Water Polo Division III National Championship in 2023, 2024, & 2025. The
team finished 3 rd at the National Championships in 2025 and record program record 18 wins on
the season. The team has also recorded 16 wins over Division 1 and 2 programs between
2022-25.
Pryor is a 2007 graduate from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor with Bachelor of Arts
degrees in both English and communication studies. He also received his Juris Doctorate from
Michigan’s Law School in 2010. He was a member of the club water polo team at the University
of Michigan during both his undergraduate days and his time in law school.
His coaching career started while in Ann Arbor, as he was the head coach for the women’s club
team during the 2010-11 school year. He went to Connecticut College as an assistant coach for
both genders from 2011 through 2014, ultimately serving as acting head coach for three
months.
After a brief stint at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island as the assistant men’s coach,
Pryor took over as the head women’s coach at VMI, which is located in Lexington, Virginia.
In his six seasons with the Keydets, Pryor compiled an overall record of 89-69 but it should be
noted that in the last four seasons that mark was an impressive 70-35. From 2017 through 2020
only seven NCAA Division I programs had a higher winning percentage than VMI. When the
season was cut short in the spring of 2020 due to COVID-19, the Keydets were cruising along
with a 12-1 record.
Three times during his tenure in Lexington, VMI set school records for single season winning
percentage and in 2017 the Keydets achieved the school’s first ever NCAA top 25 national
ranking. He is one of only seven coaches in the 125-year history of VMI athletics to post a
winning record with at least five years as the head coach (and the first since 1985).
His teams performed extremely well in the classroom as well, posting a cumulative grade point
average above 3.00 in eight of the last nine semesters. The Keydets won the Jameson Award in
2016 and again in 2019 that is given annually to the top academic team in the VMI Athletics
Department.
Year-by-Year Record
| 2014 Connecticut College |
3-4 (3-0) |
1st Place – CWPA D3 |
| 2015 VMI |
11-15 (5-7) |
5th Place – MAAC |
| 2016 VMI |
8-19 (3-9) |
6th Place – MAAC |
| 2017 VMI |
22-8 (11-3) |
4th Place – MAAC |
| 2018 VMI |
20-12 (8-6) |
4th Place – MAAC |
| 2019 VMI |
16-14 (6-8) |
4th Place – MAAC |
| 2020 VMI |
12-1 (0-0) |
COVID |
| 2021 (Men’s) Augustana |
4-12 (4-5) |
5th Place – CWPA D3 |
| 2022 (Women’s) Augustana |
9-14 (8-3) |
2nd Place – CWPA D3 |
| 2022 (Men’s) Augustana |
14-6 (7-0) |
1st Place – MPSF East |
| 2023 (Women’s) Augustana |
17-6 (10-1) |
1st Place – CWPA D3 |
| 2023 (Men’s) Augustana |
15-8 (8-0) |
1st Place – MPSF East |
| 2024 (Women’s) Augustana |
20-4 (11-0) |
1st Place – CWPA D3 |
| 2024 (Men's) Augustana |
16-7 (8-0) |
1st Place - MPSF East |
| 2025 (Women's) Augustana |
16-9 (8-3) |
1st Place - CWPA D3 |
| 2025 (Men's) Augustana |
18-9 (7-1) |
1st Place - MPSF East |
Totals
Augustana Men 67-42 (.615)
Augustana Women 62-32 (.660)
Overall Career 221-147 (.601)
Coaching Awards
2022 Sandy Nitta Midwest Zone Elite Coach of the Year (Women’s)
2023 CWPA Women’s Coach of the Year
2023 Monte Nitzkowski Midwest Zone Elite Coach of the Year (Men’s)
2024 CWPA Women’s Coach of the Year
2024 USA Water Polo Midwest Zone Elite Coach of the Year (Men’s)
2024 USA Water Polo National Elite Coach of the Year (Men’s)
