Geoffrey Clark (water polo)

Geoffrey Clark (born 8 February 1969) is an Australian water polo player who competed in the 1988 Summer Olympics and in the 1992 Summer Olympics.^[1]

College

The Pepperdine University Department of Athletics' 2009 Hall of Fame.Geoffrey Clark one of Only two water polo players in Pepperdine's history have been named to the All-American first team three times, and Geoffrey Clark joined Terry Schroeder as a member of the Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame.

Clark already had international experience when he arrived at Pepperdine in 1987. He had been a member of the Australian National Team since 1986. He missed the Waves' 1988 season due to the Seoul Olympics, where the Aussies took eighth place.

Clark made his Pepperdine debut in the 1989 season, and his three seasons with the Waves were amongst the school's best ever. He became Pepperdine's second player to earn National Player of the Year honors as a senior in 1991. He was named the Big West Conference's Player of the Year all three seasons in addition to his All-American awards. The Waves went on to the NCAA Tournament all three years, and Clark made the All-Tournament team each time.

Clark owns three of the top 20 scoring seasons in school history. He had 90 goals in 1989 (#8 on Pepperdine's list), 85 goals in 1991 (#11) and 75 goals in 1990 (#18). His three-year total of 250 goals ranks #3 all-time in the Waves' history behind Schroeder and Sasa Poljak.

At 6-foot-7, Clark was the ideally sized 2-meter man. He helped the Waves to a three-year record of 71-24, and the team won a share of the Big West Conference title all three years. At the NCAA Championships, the team placed fourth, fifth and third, respectively.

Clark continued his Australian National Team career during his Pepperdine playing days and competed at the 1990 Goodwill Games, held in Seattle, Wash. Post-Pepperdine, he made his second Olympic appearance at the 1992 Barcelona Games, where Australia placed fifth. He played with the national team until 1998.

He earned a law degree from Pace University in New York and served as a district attorney in San Antonio, Texas, for five years and a criminal defense lawyer for three. He now works in the medical field with his wife, Michelle, who is a doctor.

Clark graduated from Pepperdine with a degree in sports medicine in 1993. He and his wife have three children and they reside in San Antonio, Texas.

References