Athletic Department 10/24/2023 11:30:00 AM

Canisius Announces Athletic Department Staffing Updates

Canisius Director of Athletics Bill Maher announced a pair of staff title changes and a new hire to the Golden Griffin athletic department on Tuesday.

Lisa Liotta has been elevated to serve as the department's deputy director of athletics. A member of the Canisius staff since 2018, Liotta oversees internal operations and all aspects of the student-athlete experience, working closely with Canisius' coaching and student-services staffs to ensure a quality experience for the University's 400-plus student-athletes in competition, in the classroom and within the campus community.

She serves as the sport administrator for seven varsity sport programs: hockey, women's basketball, women's soccer, men's and women's cross country/track, men's and women's swimming and diving, women's lacrosse and rowing. Liotta represents Canisius as treasurer on the Atlantic Hockey Association (AHA) Board of Directors and serves on the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Council of Athletic Administrators. In 2023, she began a five-year term as a member of the NCAA Division I Swimming and Diving Committee, while also serving as the chairperson of the MAAC Swimming and Diving Committee. Additionally, in the summer of 2023, Liotta was selected to participate in the Women Leaders In Sports Executive Institute (EI). EI prepares and positions women for advancement to the highest level by providing an immersive development experience that coaches on executive leadership skills and career strategy. In 2021-22, she was one of 22 senior-level athletic administrators selected by the NCAA leadership development team to participate in the NCAA Pathways Program. The NCAA Pathways Program is a year-long experiential learning opportunity for senior administrators committed to becoming athletic directors or conference commissioners.

Liotta joined the Golden Griffin athletic department after spending three years as the associate director of athletics for student-athlete welfare and SWA at the University of Findlay in Findlay, Ohio. At Findlay, Liotta collaborated with various parties on campus and in the local community to ensure student-athlete academic success while also helping implement a development program for over 700 student-athletes targeting personal, professional and academic growth. She served as the Oilers' Deputy Title IX Coordinator, instructed a first-year experience class, served as various NCAA and conference tournament directors and helped orchestrate and implement the department strategic plan. Prior to joining the Findlay staff, she served the associate athletic director and SWA at Lake Erie College in Painesville, Ohio.

Pat Clarke, a member of the Canisius athletic department staff since 2012 and an athletic administrator since 2016, has been elevated to assistant athletic director for facilities. In his role, Clarke has supervision of approximately 25 staff members and fiscal management for a budget nearing $1 million. His responsibilities include oversight of all campus athletic venues, club sports, recreation, intramurals, outside rentals, Division I game contracts and coordination of game day officials that work contests at Canisius.

Prior to entering college administration, Clarke spent 17 years assisting three Division I institutions in administrative and coaching positions for their respective men's basketball programs. He began his collegiate career on the staff at St. Bonaventure for two years, which included an NCAA at-large berth and an NIT bid. He then moved to the University of Rhode Island for 11 seasons, where he was part of the coaching staff the won 184 games and earned six postseason tournament appearances. Following his tenure at URI, Clarke was an assistant coach at Canisius for four seasons, where the Griffs earned three-straight postseason appearances.

"The success of our student-athletes and coaches at Canisius is supported by an outstanding group of staff and administrators," Maher said. "Lisa and Pat have been instrumental in leading that effort and these promotions are reflective of their commitment to our student-athletes and service to our University."

Maher also announced that Mike Kochczynski, '08, MS '12, has been hired and will serve as the University's assistant athletic director for revenue generation and fan engagement. In this role, Kochczynski will be responsible for developing and executing the athletic department's marketing, promotions and ticket sales efforts, while also working on finding new revenue generation opportunities. He will also oversee and assist with the department's corporate sponsorship program and special events.

"We are excited to add Mike to our staff in this critical role as we continue the important work of finding new and engaging ways to generate more revenue," Maher said. "As a two-time graduate of Canisius, Mike's passion and energy will provide a new level of ideas focused on improving our fan engagement to make Canisius athletic events a terrific experience for our students, alumni and the Western New York community."

Kochczynski comes to Canisius after spending the previous nine years in the private sector, most recently as director of customer success at Arbol, a higher-ed start-up company based in Western New York. He also worked in the hospitality and retail industries as well, spending time as a retail manager at both Delaware North and USA Lacrosse, which is based out of Baltimore, Md.

A native of Toledo, Ohio, Kochczynski attended Canisius as an undergraduate student from 2004-08 where he was a driving force in building C-Block, the student-run club that serves as the official fan group for Canisius athletics. After earning his undergraduate degree at Canisius, he went on to serve as a graduate assistant at the University in the external affairs department before taking a full-time position in the athletic marketing department at Towson University in Baltimore, Md.

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