Adelene “Addy” Malatesta

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Adelene “Addy” grew up in Berwick, PA with her parents Joseph and Mary Malatesta, brothers Paul and Joe and sister Rosann. She graduated from Berwick High School where she earned varsity letters in Field Hockey, Basketball and Softball.  Addy’s decision to pursue a career in athletics was influenced by a professionally diverse group of high school head coaches. Her basketball coach Joan Voveris was an accomplished musician and teacher.  Her field hockey coach Dr. Betty Henry rose to the title of Superintendent of the Berwick Area Schools.  And her softball coach Paul Stenko, returned home to teach and coach after a successful NFL career with the Chicago Bears.   Following high school graduation Addy attended Slippery Rock University, where she majored in Health, Physical Education and Recreation. She returned to the Berwick Area Schools to teach health and physical education and served as the head coach of field hockey, winning the District 4 Championship in 1981.  During her tenure at Berwick, Addy earned a Master of Ed. Degree from East Stroudsburg University.  In 1982 she accepted the offer to become an Assistant Professor of Health and Physical Education and to coach the field hockey team at SUNY Potsdam, NY.  Her teams qualified for the New York State Championship three seasons and she was selected to Coach in the Empire State Games in 1984 and 1985. In 1989 Addy had the opportunity to return home to NEPA to become the head field hockey coach at Wilkes University.  Over 14 seasons her teams amassed a record of 140-113-9. The program recorded nine Conference playoff appearances, two ECAC Championships, five Freedom League Titles, a Middle Atlantic Conference title in 1999 and an NCAA Championship Appearance in 1999.  Addy had the privilege to coach four National All-Americans, eighteen Regional All-Americans and forty-seven All-Conference players. Several Wilkes field hockey teams held both regional and national rankings during their championship run. Addy stepped in to coach softball for five seasons, ending her stint with a 60-53-1 record and a MAC and an ECAC playoff appearance. She acknowledges her long-time field hockey assistant coach Mary Jo Hromchak and softball assistant coach Tom Dunsmuir for their contributions as difference makers in the lives of the student-athletes.  Addy served as the Wilkes’ Director of Athletics for twenty-three years.   Sports sponsorship grew to twenty-three teams, with nearly six hundred student-athletes.  Under Addy’s direction, multiple capital projects were successfully completed including the renovation of Schmidt Stadium and the Munson Field House, building Bruggeworth Field and the renovation of the Henry Gymnasium.  Addy is a member of the Middle Atlantic Conference, the Wilkes Athletic and the Berwick Area Halls of Fame. She is the recipient of the MAC Lou Sorrentino Award, the Wilkes President’s Award for Excellence and the Wilkes Ancestral Colonel Esprit de Corps award. It is important for Addy to acknowledge all of her colleagues who share in the team success and those who were major contributors to the capital projects to enhance the student-athlete experience. Addy would like to sincerely thank her family, friends, fellow coaches and administrators for their unwavering support throughout her forty-eight-year career.