The Lehman College Athletics Department reached back into its past today in announcing the hiring of former Lightning standout, Christian Viggiano, as Lehman's next baseball coach.

Viggiano is no stranger to the Bronx campus having manned second base for the Lightning baseball team from 1993 through 1996.

“Chris Viggiano was an outstanding player and great student-athlete at Lehman who knows what it takes to perform at a top level,” said Lehman Athletic Director Dr. Martin L. Zwiren. “His experience working in the lower Westchester public and Catholic high schools will only serve as a big bonus and will undoubtedly be a positive factor in recruiting future student-athletes and helping Lehman baseball as it continues to strive to build one of the top baseball programs in the New York region.”

A three-time City University of New York Athletic Conference All-Star, two-time Knickerbocker Conference All-Star, and NCAA All-America Second Team selection in 1995, a year in which he hit a robust .463, Viggiano was an integral member of the Lightning team that captured both the CUNY and Eastern College Athletic Conference New York/New Jersey Metropolitan Championship during the same season. Ten years after his graduation, Viggiano received the ultimate recognition of his on-field performance as he was inducted into the Lehman Athletics Hall of Fame in 2005.

Since leaving Lehman, Viggiano has made a name for himself among local coaching circles with stops at Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, where he was the varsity baseball coach as well as an assistant for the boys' basketball team; Saunders Trades and Technical School in Yonkers, where he headed both the varsity baseball and basketball teams; and most recently Iona Preparatory in New Rochelle, where he served under legendary Iona Prep baseball coach Fred Gallo for two seasons while also assisting head basketball coach Vic Quirolo for the previous five.

During Iona Prep's run to the New York State Catholic High School Athletic Association Class A boys' basketball title in 2009, Viggiano showed his ability to adapt to adversity and remain calm under pressure when he was asked to grab the reins of the team after Quirolo required emergency surgery the night before the championship game. With Viggiano temporarily in the top spot, the Gaels didn't miss a beat, calmly taking the title 60-54 over Bishop Ford.

Viggiano's history with Iona Prep goes back even further, however, as the Mount Vernon native played for Gallo, who is now in his 29th season of coaching the Gaels. As a senior, Viggiano earned All-Archdiocese honors and competed in the CHSAA's Bronx/Manhattan All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium.

“Coach Gallo instilled in me the importance of accountability, structure and discipline, all of which I'll look to transfer to the team here at Lehman,” said Viggiano.

In addition to his various coaching stops, Viggiano is currently a physical education teacher at Saunders and also served in that capacity at Archbishop Stepinac, St. Joseph's School (Bronxville, NY), Annunciation School (Crestwood, NY), Sacred Heart (Mt. Vernon, NY), and Blessed Sacrament (both in New Rochelle and the Bronx).