A mainstay at John Jay College Patrick Malia is now in his 17th season as the head softball coach with the Bloodhounds.
Arguably the best head coach in the history of John Jay athletics, many of Malia’s accolades have unprecedented and unsurpassed. Since taking over the program in 1991 Malia has garnered 205 career wins as a head coach, the second most wins in John Jay athletics coaching history (only John Jay hall-of-fame baseball coach Lou DeMartino with 424 wins has more). And under Malia’s watch the Bloodhounds have won a City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) championship (2000) and two Hudson Valley Women’s Athletic Conference (HVWAC) championships (1993 and 1999). Malia has also won the conference coach of the year once (2000).
In addition Malia was the first (and only to this day) John Jay athletics coach to earn an automatic berth into a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III tournament. Malia achieved the feat in 2000, the first year the CUNYAC was awarded the berth for the conference champion. In the championship game the Bloodhounds rallied back from a 10 run deficit to defeat the College of Staten Island, 11-10, the biggest comeback in CUNYAC softball playoff history.
Prior to his head coaching duties at John Jay, Malia broke in as an assistant coach at York College, his alma mater during the 1990 season. Malia graduated from York in 1982 with a bachelor’s degree in economics. And while at York Malia was a four year letter winner on the baseball team where played second base and shortstop.
Though technically a part-time employee, Malia has been around the college for many extended hours assisting the athletics department and student athletes in many aspects. He served as interim assistant director of athletics in 1999 and 2001. He also served as assistant women’s basketball coach during the 1990-91 season where he was very instrumental in recruiting several key players to the team that played a vital role during their 1991-92 CUNYAC championship season.
Malia had also served for many years as an assistant coach of the men’s and women’s cross country team.
Currently Malia, is employed fulltime with Administrative Children Services (ACS), a public agency that serves New York City’s most needy children. He has been employed there since 1989, and has served as manager since 2004. And in 1999 Malia was one of only 17 people to earn the very prestigious “Isaac Liberman Award,” an award given for outstanding public service to the city. Malia was the first ACS employee to ever receive the honor.
In addition Malia has served as a father figure to many student-athletes through the years. To this day 58 of his former athletes have gone on to careers in the New York Police Department (NYPD), while many others have graduated into a variety of careers in the public service area.
A 1977 graduate of Christ the King High School, Malia resides in the Middle Village section of Queens, N.Y.
