Melissa Scata enters her third season as an assistant coach with the Norfolk State softball program in 2021. In her first year with the team, the Spartans captured their first ever MEAC Northern Division title.
NSU finished 11-4 in the standings in 2019, its first regular season championship of any kind since joining the league prior to the 1998 season. In Scata’s first season, the Spartans enjoyed their first winning record (25-20) in six years. In addition, a total of four players were named All-MEAC: catcher Kylee Lopez and outfielder Shelby DesChamps (first team), pitcher Hunter Halford (second team) and pitcher Skylar Swain (third team).
Scata’s second year with the program in 2020 was cancelled after March 12, just 21 games into the season, due to COVID-19.
Scata made her return to the collegiate game after spending the previous several years as an AAU coach and a private instructor. From 2015-18, Scata coached the Brand New Ballgame Hornets fastpitch 16U and 18U teams. She served as an instructor at Brand New Ballgame in her home state of Massachusetts from 2013-18 as well.
She spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Curry College in Milton, Massachusetts, from 2013-14. During her time there, the Colonels finished 49-35, including 21-15 in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC).
In those two seasons, seven players earned either first- or second-team all-conference honors. An additional six players were named honorable mention, and in 2014, Marissa Bruno was named the league’s Rookie of the Year. Curry College saw its team batting average jump by 30 points from Scata’s first to her second year there.
She served as the head softball coach at Concord Academy from 2010-11 and her alma mater Medway High School in 2012. In addition, she was the JV field hockey coach at Medway from 2010-12. Prior to her time at Brand New Ballgame, she served as an instructor at Sluggers Academy in 2012.
A four-year letterwinner from 2005-08 at Keene State College in New Hampshire, Scata still holds the school’s all-time home run record with 27. She also ranks second in RBI (123) and fourth in slugging (.592).
As a catcher, she was a three-time All-Little East Conference honoree, including first-team in 2005 and ’06 and second-team in ’08. She was also an NEISCA (New England Intercollegiate Softball Coaches Association) Division III All-Star. Scata led Keene State to the NCAA Tournament in 2005 and ’07, and the ’05 team set the school record with a 34-8 record.
She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in management from Keene State in 2008.
