LOS ANGELES -- Sonoma State University head women's water polo coach Coralie Simmons is one of nine inductees that will make up the 2012 UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame Class, it was announced by UCLA Athletic Director Dan Guerrero on May 4.  A four-time national collegiate champion, a two-time National Player of the Year and a silver medalist in the 2000 Summer Olympics with the U.S. Women's National Team, Simmons will be inducted during an invitation-only ceremony on Friday, Oct. 12 at Ackerman Grand Ballroom in Los Angeles.

"I'm honored to be a part of such an esteemed group," said Simmons.  "Some of my greatest athletic memories came when coaching and playing at UCLA.  My intentions at Sonoma State are to bring the winning spirit and determination I learned as a Bruin."

Joining Simmons in the 2012 UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame Class will be Ron Ballatore (men's swimming coach), Dr. Julie Bremner Romias (women's volleyball), Jack Hirsch (men's basketball), Fred McNeill (football), Stacey Nuveman (softball), Charles Pasarell (men's tennis) and Stella Umeh (gymnastics).  In addition, Dr. Gerald Finerman will be inducted for his extraordinary service to the UCLA athletics department.

UCLA Athletics will also recognize the entire induction class at halftime of the UCLA football game against Utah on Saturday, Oct. 13.

To read the official UCLA press release, click here.

A two-time National Player of the Year at UCLA in 1997 and 1998, Simmons guided the Bruins to four national championships (1996, 1997 and 1998, in addition to the inaugural NCAA title in 2001).  In 2001, she was the recipient of the Pete Cutino Award, given annually to the top NCAA male and female players, and earned NCAA Tournament MVP honors after scoring the game-winning goal with just 1:28 remaining in the final period to give UCLA a 5-4 win over Stanford.  Simmons left UCLA as the school-record holder in career goals (235) and single-season goals (74 in 1998).

In 1999, Simmons redshirted the season at UCLA to compete with the U.S. Women's National Team and she helped the United States capture a silver medal at the Pan-American Games that summer.  The Hemet, Calif. native also became the only team member to record a goal in all six Pan-Am Games (she also led the U.S. squad with 10 total goals).

Simmons also sat out the 2000 season at UCLA to be a member of the U.S. Olympic Team.  She was instrumental in helping the United States bring home a silver medal at the Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, tying for the team lead in scoring with nine goals at the Games.  Simmons also helped the U.S. National Team qualify for the Olympic Games in the World Women's Olympic Qualification Tournament in Italy, in which she scored a team-leading eight goals.

After her senior season at UCLA in 2001, Simmons played for two different professional water polo teams in Athens, Greece, and her squads won three Greek Championships and one European Cup.  In 2005, Simmons began her coaching career as a water polo assistant at the University of Hawai'i before later joining the UCLA staff in a similar role.  She then took over the program at Sonoma State prior to the 2008 season.  In just her second season at SSU in 2009, Simmons was named the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches' (ACWPC) Division II National Coach of the Year.  She led the Seawolves to their best-ever finish in the WWPA Championship Tournament in 2009, as Sonoma State lost by just one goal to CSU Bakersfield in the third-place match.