Meet the Coaches
MADDIE BUTLER
CO-HEAD COACH | 16U
PETER SABBATINI
CO-HEAD COACH | 18U
SETH FREEDMAN
12U | 10U
TRIPPE BAUMAN
14U
LILAH AL MASRI
BASE | REC LEAGUE
GREG LINDVAY
BASE | REC LEAGUE
MADASONNE BUTLER
NAVY AC CO-HEAD COACH
All her life Maddie has been focused athletically around water. Her mother was a swimmer in college and ensured Maddie and her sister followed the same path. By the age of eleven Maddie discovered water polo, a sport that she has been committed to for over a decade.
As a young player, Maddie joined the Olympic Development Program for the California Central Zone while also competing at the Varsity level in high school. During this time, she was selected to attend the National Team Selection Camp from years 2011-2016. In 2016 she was selected to the 16U Cadet National Team. She trained with the best coaches and age group players around the country and learned an incredible amount about water polo.
Maddie continued her water polo career at California State University, Northridge’s Division 1 Water Polo Program. During her first three years on the team she was able to contribute significantly to our programs’ success, playing center position and scoring 12 goals and 28 ejections drawn freshman year, 20 goals and 35 ejections drawn sophomore year, and 34 goals with a team high 77 ejections drawn junior year. Covid impacted the program her senior year as the season was shorted and then canceled due to the pandemic. During her time at California State University, Northridge she received the Team Spirit Award (2018) and set two team records in Goal Percentage and Kick Outs Drawn. Maddie was also named All American Honorable Mention (2020) by the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC).
Upon graduating from California State University, Northridge in 2020, Maddie earned a bachelor’s degree in Deaf Studies and Elementary Education. She went on to earn a Dual master’s degree in Deaf Education and Elementary Education from Gallaudet University in 2022. Currently, she is a high school teacher working in Montgomery County with deaf students.
Through her experiences within the water, she has learned how to connect to and coach young players who are currently in the process of what she experienced all those years ago. Her new goals include teaching young athletes how to love and appreciate the sport that has given her everything she has today.
PETER SABBATINI
NAVY AC CO-HEAD COACH
Peter Sabbatini returns to Annapolis, MD to assist coaching his alma mater club water polo program. As a four year varsity letter winner at Princeton University and under the head coach leadership of Luis Nicolao, Peter was a member of the water polo program that helped solidify Princeton as an East Coast powerhouse and helped lead the team to its second NCAA Final Four Tournament appearance in 2004. Over the course of his collegiate career as Princeton’s goalie, Peter garnered multiple accolades: ECAC Championship Most Valuable Player (2003), CWPA Southern Player of the Year (2003), First-Team All Southern (2003, 2004), Second-Team All Southern (2002), CWPA Eastern Most Valuable Player (2004), First-Team All-Eastern Tournament Team (2003, 2004), Second-Team All-NCAA Tournament Team (2004), and All-America (Third-Team, 2003; Second-Team, 2004). Peter was inducted into the Collegiate Water Polo Association Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2024.
Outside of Princeton water polo, Peter was a member of the National Youth Team (2001), National Junior Team (2000, 2003) and trained with the National A Team (April 2006 to December 2007), which provided him with the opportunities of training at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO (1998, 2006), training internationally (Canada, Venezuela, Romania, Yugoslavia, Greece and Italy) and competing in international tournaments such as NORAMS (1999), Junior Pan-American Championships (2000, earning Co-MVP Tournament Goalie), and the Junior World Championships (2003). Peter is excited about returning and giving back to the program that provided him the opportunities to develop his talents and to gain his athletic experiences and success.
SETH FREEDMAN
Seth was raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico where he swam and played competitive water polo throughout middle and high school. He led his high school team, La Cueva High School, to victory in the 2006 and 2007 New Mexico State Water Polo championships and was selected for the state Most Valuable Player award both years. As a club water polo player he traveled throughout the west coast area to play in USAWP tournaments. He also participated in multiple Zone tournaments as a representative of the Mountain Zone.
After high school Seth enlisted in the Marines and served for one year before being selected to attend the U.S. Naval Academy. He graduated in 2012 and returned to the Marine Corps where he served on active duty for ten years. Seth and his family recently relocated to Annapolis, Maryland where he works as a consultant for Booz Allen Hamilton and continues to serve in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve.
Over the years, Seth has maintained his passion for both swimming and water polo and frequently participates in masters level events.
TRIPPE BAUMAN
Coach Trippe Bauman is a lifelong aquatic athlete and Annapolis native with deep roots in competitive swimming and water polo. He began swimming with the SPY Swim Club and later transitioned to water polo, competing for five years with the Navy Aquatic Club. During high school, Trippe was a four-year varsity swimmer at Broadneck High School while also playing water polo at a competitive level.
Trippe continued his athletic career at Iona University, where he played collegiate water polo. Despite the challenges of the pandemic cutting short his 2020 season, he went on to score over 100 career goals and 100 assists, serving as a two-time team captain during his senior and fifth years. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Social Work from Iona in May 2025.
With a family legacy in swimming, Trippe brings both passion and experience to the pool. He remains committed to giving back to the sport and the club that helped shape his journey.
LILAH AL MASRI
Coach Lilah grew up a multi-sport athlete and was introduced to water polo when she entered high school at Suffield Academy. Her water polo career continued at Villanova University where she earned All-American and All-Conference honors. She was fortunate to be able to play after college with the Boston Metro water polo team while pursuing her Master’s degree in Nutrition at Boston University.
Lilah’s love for sports and science led her to a career as a Sports and Performance Dietitian. She’s worked at the United States Naval Academy, with the NBA G-League and co-authored a book on nutrition. Lilah currently works with recreational and elite athletes of all ages in her private practice, Lilah Sports RD.
Having worked with athletes on every level, from youth to college age, she’s thrilled to return to Navy AC to help young athletes learn new skills and further her favorite sport.
Lilah has two young daughters, Zara and Bela, and she's excited to teach them how sport can bring success in and out of the water.
Fun fact - Coach Lilah & Coach Greg played on the same team in Boston!
GREG LINDVAY
BIO COMING SOON...