Merrill Moses


Merrill M. Moses is an American Olympic silver medalist, three-time Olympian, and Pan American Games gold medalist water polo player.

Early and personal life

Moses was born in Harbor City, California to Max and Marlene Moses, and is Jewish. He lived in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, and attended Peninsula High School. He and his wife Laura have two children, Adrianna Nicole and Makenna Merrill, and live in Newbury Park, California.

Water polo career

While he was in high school, Moses was the Bay League MVP and an All-California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section selection as a senior, and competed with the US Junior National Team.
Moses attended Pepperdine University and played goalkeeper in water polo for four seasons for the Pepperdine Waves from 1995-98. He was All-American honorable mention in 1996, first team in 1997, and second team in 1998. He was also All-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation all four years, and 1997 MPSF Goalkeeper of the Year. He helped lead Pepperdine to the 1997 NCAA championship. He graduated from Pepperdine in 1999 with a degree in public relations. Moses was inducted into the Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame in 2013.
He was the starting goalkeeper for Team USA at the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Olympics. He was a goalkeeper on the United States men's national water polo team at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. In the championship game, the USA team won the silver medal, defeated by Hungary. He was named to the Olympic all-star team. Moses also won gold medals with Team USA at the 2007, 2011, and 2015 Pan American Games.
In December 2010, Moses' Olympic silver medal was stolen by thieves when his parents' house was burglarized. The thieves also stole both a ring and a watch that he had been given by the US Olympic Committee.
He is now Associate Head Coach in water polo at Pepperdine.

Honors

In 2015 he was inducted into the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.