Leisering Named Director of Hockey Operations

LEISERING NAMED DIRECTOR OF HOCKEY OPERATIONS

Will also assume fundraising and marketing duties

Sept. 8, 2006

Erie, Pa. - Mercyhurst College Director of Athletics Pete Russo today named long-time Mercyhurst employee John Leisering as Director of Hockey Operations, Fundraising and Marketing for both the men's and women's programs. Leisering will assume his new duties immediately.

Leisering has worked at Mercyhurst College for 20 years, the last nine as sports information director (SID). He began his Mercyhurst career as director of athletics, a position he held from l986 to l989. Two of the head coaches hired under his jurisdiction are still active at the college: men's varsity hockey coach Rick Gotkin and men's cross country coach Mike Fraley, both of whom were hired in l988. In addition, two of the college's most successful sports were initiated during his three years as AD: women's soccer and men's varsity hockey, both of which started in l987. Gotkin, in fact, has taken the men's hockey team to the NCAA playoffs six times.

Leisering has served as the men's hockey SID since the program began in 1987. The women's program was started in 1999. He was honored by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) for excellence in men's hockey publications in l995, l996, l997, l998, and l999. He is a former member of the college senate and is a current member of the Mercyhurst Athletic Hall of Fame Committee and a former member of CoSIDA and the Eastern College Athletic Conference Sports Information Directors' Association (ECAC-SIDA). He was honored with the Irving T. Marsh Award for excellence in the sports information field in June of 2005 during the 50th anniversary of ECAC-SIDA in Cape Cod.

From l989 to l997, Leisering worked as both the general manager of the college's radio station, WMCE, and as an instructor in the communication's department. While at WMCE, he broadcast a number of college athletic events, including baseball, basketball, football, and hockey. Among his notable performances were NCAA men's hockey playoff games in l99l and l993 and women's basketball playoff games in l994 and l995. He has the distinction of calling the television play-by-play for the Mercyhurst men's hockey team's first trip to the NCAA Division I playoffs in 200l when the Lakers bowed to powerful Michigan 4-3 at the West Regional in Grand Rapids, Mich.

Leisering took over as the college's SID in July l997. He oversaw the promotion and publicity of 25 varsity sports and nearly 700 student-athletes. Several of his former sports information assistants and/or student workers over the years became highly successful in sports administration: assistant SID Craig Rybczynski (l997-98) moved to Rochester to work for both the Rochester professional hockey and lacrosse teams; Leisering's son, David (l999-2000), who helped in sports information while attending Mercyhurst, served two years as SID at the University of Findlay and is now successfully employed as a web manager for Corry Publishing in Erie; assistant SID Aaron Chimenti (2002) left after a year to become SID at Heidelberg College; Mark Fisher (2003 and 2004) departed for the head job at Carnegie Mellon; Ty Patton (2005) resigned to become an assistant SID at Appalachian State; and daughter, Mary Ellen (2002-06), who was a four-year student assistant at Mercyhurst, is now doing an internship in the SID office at Wayne State in Detroit.

Leisering came to Erie in l978 and worked in the news and/or sports departments for several Erie radio stations. He was public address announcer for the Erie Blades hockey team from l978 to l982 and did play-by-play for the subsequent Erie Golden Blades and the Erie Panthers. After coming to Erie, he completed his college education at Mercyhurst in l98l, graduating cum laude with a degree in business administration. He was also a Dean's List student.

Leisering and his wife, Katy, live in Erie and have been married 31 years.