Canisius head softball coach Kim Griffin announced the hiring of Joe Gierlak, Christie McGee-Ross and Gianna Fazzolari to her staff as assistant coaches for the 2025 season on Friday.
"I am excited to welcome Joe, Christie and Gianna to our staff this year," Griffin said. "Joe comes with a wealth of knowledge and experience at Division I and Division II levels. He has a passion for hitting and will be a great mentor for our players. Christie and Gianna both just finished up exceptional careers playing for the program. Their experience as players at Canisius gives them a unique ability to relate to and connect with our student-athletes. Christie will work with the outfield and our slappers, while Gianna will work with our catchers and hitters. They have both been instrumental in developing our championship-level team culture, so I am thrilled they can continue that with our current team."
Gierlak was an all-region baseball player at Clarion University before beginning his softball coaching career as a volunteer assistant coach at Edinboro University for five years. Gierlak moved on to serve an assistant coach for Cambridge Springs High School in Cambridge Springs, Pa., before joining the staff at Mercyhurst University as a volunteer assistant coach.
After spending one season at Mercyhurst, he joined the coaching staff at the University at Buffalo as a volunteer assistant. Gierlak served as a volunteer assistant at UB for two seasons before being promoted to the Bulls' pitching coach in 2024. Gierlak has also been active in the softball camps and clinics scene since 2018.
McGee-Ross and Fazzolari join the Griffs' coaching staff after stellar four-year careers in Blue and Gold where they both played key roles in helping the Griffs make four-straight appearances in the MAAC Softball Championship game from 2021-24. In 2022, the duo were a part of the 2022 MAAC Championship team, which gave the Griffs' their 13th appearance in the NCAA Softball Tournament, and the pair also helped Canisius win back-to-back MAAC regular season crowns in 2022 and 2023.
A native of Cheektowaga, N.Y., McGee-Ross was tabbed an All-MAAC First Team honoree as an outfielder in 2023 and 2024. A three-time All-MAAC Championship Team honoree, McGee-Ross led the Griffs in 2024 with a .395 batting average, 41 runs scored, 51 hits and three triples on her way to earning NFCA All-Great Lakes Region Second Team honors, while also being named the 2023-24 Canisius Female Athlete of the Year. A three-time MAAC All-Academic Team member, she earned her undergraduate degree from Canisius in mathematics last spring.
Fazzolari, the all-time home run leader at Canisius with 30 career bombs, was a three-time All-MAAC honoree at catcher, highlighted by a pair of first-team selections in 2022 and 2023. A native of Newfane, N.Y., Fazzolari is a three-time MAAC All-Academic team honoree, who holds the school records in career RBI (145), home runs in a single season (11) and consecutive games with a home run (6).
