Melissa Piacentini joins the RIT women’s hockey staff as an assistant coach for the 2017-18 season.
Last season, Piacentini played for EV Bozen 84 in Bolzano, Italy, helping lead the team to the Italian League and European Women’s Hockey League Championships.
Piacentini played four seasons at College Hockey America rival Syracuse University from 2012-16. Named the CHA Player of the Year in 2016, Piacentini finished her Syracuse career as the program's all-time leader in points (112), goals (53), assists (59), plus/minus (+60) and multi-point games (27). She was a CHA First Team selection in 2015 and earned second team honors in 2016, as Syracuse advanced to CHA Championship game three times.
Piacentini, who also served as an assistant captain for the Orange in 2015-16 earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology and was a two-time CHA All-Academic Team selection. In 2016, Piacentini won the Syracuse University Courage 8 Award, ‘Cuse Cares Team Award and was a nominee for the Doris Soladay Award.
Before arriving at Syracuse, Piacentini, a native of Weymouth, Mass., played for Assabet Valley in the Under-19 Tier I National Championships, helping the team to the gold medal in 2012. She also was a member of Assabet Valley’s Under-14 team that won gold in 2009. Piacentini was co-MVP of the Independent School League while also receiving All-League honors for Thayer Academy.
