Former Quinnipiac baseball head coach Joe Mattei died at the age of 86 on Feb. 18, Quinnipiac Athletics announced in a Feb. 26 press release.
Mattei was a graduate of then-Quinnipiac College, later becoming an assistant coach for the Division II Quinnipiac Braves in 1988. For the next nine seasons, the North Haven resident was an assistant before being promoted in 1997.
During his time as head coach, he led the team’s transition from Division II to Division I, competing in the Northeast 10 Conference. In his first season, the Bobcats won the conference championship, beating Merrimack 15-12.
The former Quinnipiac head coach was also named the conference’s Coach of the Year in 1997 and finished his five seasons with the Bobcats with an 80-113 record.
In addition, his name is part of Quinnipiac’s Joseph M. Mattei Endowed Scholarship for Baseball.
