Head Coach:  Mariska Field

After teaching myself how to swim in my family’s pool at 3 years old, I started club swimming at 7 and fell in love with the sport. I swam with the Walnut Creek Swim Club for 11 years during the summers, Walnut Creek Aquabears and the Terrapins during the off seasons. I swam all four years in High School and also competed in Water Polo for two years.

My coaching career began at college in Monterey for the Seaside Dolphins in 1996. I married a Naval Officer in 1999, and moved to San Diego and coached there from 1999-2005, with the Scripps Ranch Tsunami Swim Team. After this, the next duty station was Japan. In Japan I coached with the Yokosuka Seahawks for 1.5 years. Moving back to the Monterey area, I was able to coach with the Seaside Dolphins for three more years. After a few years off for deployments and my masters, I began coaching in Northern Virginia in 2014 where I coached for the year-round team, OCCS, the Ashland Stingrays Summer team and for Garfield High School in Woodbridge. After leaving Virginia we moved to our last duty station, Stuttgart, Germany. While there I was the assistant head coach for the Stuttgart Piranhas who were a part of the European Forces Swim League.

After leaving Stuttgart at the end of May 2019, I and my three children moved to Benicia and were very excited to finally set down roots. I have been the head coach of the Benicia High School Swim team since 2020 and the head coach of the Benicia Stingrays since Fall of 2020. I hold a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential, and a Masters in Education as a Reading Specialist. I am currently a 4th grade teacher at Robert Semple here in Benicia. My passion for swimming has now spanned four decades and am I only truly content on a pool deck. My goal for my swimmers and families is to love this sport as much as I do. Swimming is a whole family sport as it takes a village/community for our children to thrive.

Assistant Coach:  Miguel Vargas

Coach Miguel is very excited to be a part of the Stingrays! He started swimming competitively in high school and continued in college where he broke a few school records, won a few championships, and competed at the national level. Today he is a coach and educator for the fitness company TRX. His favorite part about the Stingrays is watching the kids make friends, have fun, and swim fast! He looks forward to coaching and cheering for all the swimmers this season and watching their love for fitness and swimming grow!

Assistant Coach Karissa Hammerquist

Hi Stingray Family!! I'm Coach Karissa and I’m excited to be back on deck, behind the blocks yelling at kids, but in a “Kick Harder!,” “GO Faster!,” coach kind of way. This is my first season officially coaching the Benicia Stingrays. I grew up recreationally and competitively swimming (against the Stingrays, LOL) for the Hercules Piranhas, and have “just kept swimming” ever since. I kicked off my itch for coaching as a Jr. Coach and eventually became the Head Coach for the Hercules Piranhas Swim Team and the Hercules High School Swim Team. I went on to swim for Diablo Valley College, when I realized I was a better student than an athlete. Fast forward after two degrees, a career in pediatric physical therapy, and creating a beautiful family with two young athletes, I wanted to give back to the wonder of youth sports. I volunteer and coach any activity my kids immerse themselves into. My goal with any youth sport is for a child to have a fun and positive experience, make new friends, learn commitment and teamwork, and hopefully, learn a little baseball, basketball, football, or swim along the way. The swim team holds a special place in my heart and I cannot wait to share and develop that same passion in any swimmer.

GOOO Stingrays!!!

Assistant Coach:  Brian Cannon

Hello Stingray family! I’m Brian, this will be my first season with the Stingrays and I’m very excited to be here. I’m originally from Utah, I moved to Benicia with my wife and three kids over four years ago.   I learned to swim in my uncle’s pool and spent every minute I could in the water. In high school, I finally dove into competitive swimming and our team won a few championships.  I’ve been coaching different sports throughout the years, also helping with other youth activities. I love helping kids grow and push themselves to be their best. I’m very excited to be a part of the Stingray family!

Assistant Coach Elias Richter

My name is Elias Richter, I am 19 years old and have been a competitive swimmer my entire life. I grew up in Long Beach, New York in a house that was a 5 minute walk from the ocean. My swimming career started as learning ocean safety but quickly became the biggest part of my identity. I’ve worked with and taught children in Long Beach to surf as an instructor at a well known local surf camp. I currently work in Half Moon Bay State Beach as a California State Lifeguard. I’m beyond excited to start coaching kids and sharing my passion with each of them.

Assistant Coach Inessa Tsai (will be rejoining us in late May 2024!)

My name is Inessa Tsai and I am 18 years old and have been swimming with this team since I was 9! I am currently a student at Eckerd College in St. Pete, Florida and majoring in Animal Studies and minoring in Marine Science. I am very excited to see these swimmers again and see them grow in their technique and passion, while assisting them as much as I can!

Assistant Coach Steve Mainini (will be joining us in Summer 2024!)

Junior Assistant Coach Aden Li (will be joining us in Summer 2024!)

My name is Aden Li and I am 17 years old.  I first started swimming at age 5 and joined the Stingrays around age 6.  I stayed with the Stingrays until I was 10, winning high point at County Championship Meet and then moved to year round swim.  I currently swim with the Terrapins and compete at the national level.  I have experience with coaching and private lessons and I'm very excited to help coach the Stingrays this summer! 

Editor's note:  Aden holds the Benicia High School all time records for 100 backstroke, 100 fly and 200 medley relay.  He has additional all time top 10 BHS times in many other events!