To contact a coach, just click on their name. Any questions regarding the club or registration should be directed to Miguel Figueras. While some coaches are designated as the head of a certain group, many of the coaches will be assisting with the other age groups.
Meet the Coaches
Club Directore / Head Coach SLAP Girls / 14U / 12U
Miguel holds a BA in Economics and Theology from Loyola Marymount University. He served as the head water polo coach at DeSmet Jesuit High School from 2002-2017. Miguel began coaching in 1993 as an assistant with MICDS and the Daisy Water Polo Club. He has also assisted at University City High School and the Tidewater Polo Club in Virginia Beach, VA. Currently he is a Second Grade teacher and Student Services Coordinator at The Wilson School in Clayton, MO. Miguel played NCAA varsity water polo for Loyola Marymount University and is currently a member of the Clayton Water Polo Club. He is the 2004, 2005 & 2010 Suburban Central Conference Coach of the Year, 2014 & 2017 Gateway West Conference Coach of the Year, 2004, 2005 & 2010 District Coach of the Year. He has coached in four state championship games (1993, 2000, 2009 & 2010), twice as an assistant and twice as a head coach. As a head coach he has lead the DeSmet Spartans to 6 Final Four appearances. He started SLAP in the summer of 2001. He is a former Missouri Water Polo board member and served as both a board member and Chairperson of the USA Water Polo Midwest Zone from 2012-2020. In 2014 he was named an Assistant Coach USA Water Polo Men's Development National Team and continues to serve in various capacities and an Assistant National Team Coach. He is a member of the 2018 Missouri Water Polo Hall of Fame as well as the recepient of the 2018 Andy Burke/George Ratkovic Zone Chair of the Year Award given by USA Water Polo. In the summer of 2018 we was an Assistant Coach on staff with the USA Future's Team training in Budapest, Hungary. He currenlty is the Midwest Zone Olympic Development Head Girls Head Girls Coach and has previously served as the Midwest Zone Boys Development Coach.Miguel lives in Ballwin with his wife, Karen, and 2 sons, Alex, who attends Washington University and is the captain of the school's water polo team and Adam who is starting his freshman year at Grinnell College.
18U Boys
Currenly the Head Coach of McKendree University Men's and Women's Water Polo team, Colleen graduated from Kirkwood High School in 2007. During her time at KHS she was a two time Missouri Water Polo Female Player of the Year. She was also named to All-Conference and All-District teams her senior year. Following graduation at KHS, Colleen played NCAA collegiate water polo at Marist College, where she participated in the NCAA Championships. Colleen was the Head Coach of both JV and Varisty Water Polo at Kirkwood High School and Midwest Zone Olympic Development Program. Colleen was selected as a coach for the 2014 Girls Holiday Camp at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO. In her short tenure at McKendree, CColleen has received coaching recogniction on both the Men's and Women's side: The 2017 Women's Division 2 Coach of the Year, 2018 Division 2 Men's Championship Coach of the Year and the 2018 Metro Atlantic Water Polo Conference -West Dick Russell Coach of the Year Award.
16U Boys
Corey holds a BS in Physical Education from Salem International University and a Masters from Southwest Baptist University. He is the former head water polo coach at Ladue High School where he also holds the position of PE Teacher and Pool Manager. Corey has coached for 5 years both at the club level with the St. Louis Gators and the Flyers Aquatics Team as well as for 5 seasons with Oakville High School as the head coach before moving to Ladue in 2005. Corey played water polo for Golden West Junior College in Huntington Beach, CA and NCAA varsity water polo at Salem International University. Corey is the 2004 Suburan South Conference Coach of the Year and coached the Ladue Rams to a 2nd place finish in 2011. In 2013 Corey was named Gateway North Conference Coach of the Year as well as the Missouri Water Polo Coach of the Year. He is a former board member of Missouri Water Polo and currently a Missouri High School and USWP certified official. Corey's father, Dave Miller, was a member of the US National Team. Corey lives in South County with his wife and 2 sons.
Nicki Borella
18U Boys / Splashball
Coach Nicki is the Head Coach of both JV and Varsity for the Christian Brothers College Prep High School water polo team. In her first year as the Cadets coach she earned the 2021 title of Conference Coach of The Year, where the cadets won their first conference season. She is a 2014 graduate of Kirkwood High School where she was awarded All-Conference and All-District nominations. After high school she went on to play at Mercyhurst University, and earned herself a 4 year starting position. After University she lived in Yangzhou China for a year to learn mandarin and teach kindergarten at The Shane English School. Currently, she is an Infectious Disease Scientist at Washington University School of Medicine, and is furthering her career in Clinical Mental Health. Nicki began her coaching career with SLAP in the spring of 2021 with the 12U and Splashball teams, and is now working with our 18U and Splashball group.
18U Boys & 16U Boys
Coach Taylor is the Head Coach of the De Smet Jesuit High School water polo team. He is a 2010 graduate of the University of Redlands (CA), where he was a member of the NCAA water polo team and earned a BS in Business Administration. After earning two SCIAC conference championships in four years as a player, Taylor spent the 2011 season as an assistant coach with the team. After college, he began his coaching career with SLAP in the fall of 2012 with the 14U and 12U teams. He has been with the club ever since and now does most of the traveling with various age groups. Taylor is also a 2006 graduate of University City High School where he was an All-Conference & All- District player 3 times. He still plays with Clayton Water Polo Club as a master’s athlete and works full time in finance.
John Datillo
16U Boys
John graduated from Parkway North High School in 1999, where he was an All-District water polo player and state swimmer. He then went on to play water polo for Golden West Junior College in Huntington Beach, CA where he received the Coach’s Award. He was a 2004 graduate of Culver-Stockton College, where he earned a BS in Business Administration. John is currently the Junior Varsity Coach of the Parkway Central Colts Water Polo team. John works full time in construction and property management. He still enjoys playing water polo with his son.
Brandon Murdock
SLAP Girls / Splashball
