SCHENECTADY, N.Y.—Josh Sciba, the Assistant Coach for the Colgate University women’s hockey team and a 2007 graduate of the University of Notre Dame has been named Head Women’s Hockey Coach at Union College. The announcement was made today by Union’s Director of Athletics Jim McLaughlin ’93.
“Josh Sciba’s experience as a student-athlete at Notre Dame and a coach at Colgate provide an excellent blend of academic, athletic and coaching attributes that will benefit us from our next head women’s ice hockey coach,” said McLaughlin. “He impressed the committee with his interest and due diligence in what he will do for our program. We have excellent student-athletes in our women’s ice hockey program and we believe Josh is a perfect fit and the right person to build Union Women’s Ice Hockey into prominence in ECAC Hockey and nationally.”
Sciba served as the assistant coach at Colgate from 2012-2016. He becomes the fourth head coach in the history of Union College Women’s Hockey.
“First off, I want to thank Jim McLaughlin and the entire Union College staff for giving me this opportunity, said Sciba. “Being a head coach has always been a goal throughout my entire career and I couldn’t be more excited to be the new leader of this hockey program. This is going to be a fun process that we’re going to take a day at a time. Our staff is going to inject some new life, a new attitude, and create an environment that is full of passion and energy. We’re going to get to work right away.”
In the 2015-16 season, Sciba helped lead the Raiders to a program-record 22 wins and a No. 8 ranking in the final USCHO.com national poll. He also constructed and managed Colgate’s power play, which finished the year ranked seventh in the nation (21.01%).
As the recruiting coordinator for the Raiders, Sciba recruited and committed five Hockey Canada Under-18 players, one USA Hockey Under-18 player, one Czech Republic Under-18 player and one Swiss National Team player, all of which were firsts in program history.
Prior to Colgate, Sciba spent one season as the head women’s hockey coach at Niagara University after serving as the assistant coach for three years. Under his tutelage, the Purple Eagles had five players named to the College Hockey America All-Rookie Team and four players named All-Conference.
While at Niagara, Sciba organized several community service events, working with the Skating Association for the Blind and Handicapped (SABAH), Western New York Girls in Sports and Habitat for Humanity.
Sciba earned his Bachelor’s degree from Notre Dame in 2007, where he compiled 72 points in 141 career games for the Fighting Irish. During his time in South Bend, the team won a Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) regular season title, a CCHA Playoff Championship and played in two NCAA tournaments. Prior to attending Notre Dame, Sciba was an assistant captain with the USA National Team Development Program Under-17 Team and Under-18 Team. After college, Sciba played one year of professional hockey in the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL).
