University of Detroit Mercy Women's Softball

Dan Vitale was named Head Coach of the Detroit Mercy softball program in August 2023. Vitale returned to the program after helping guide the Titans to the 2019 Horizon League Championship as a Volunteer Assistant Coach. He is the 14th head coach in school history.  Vitale earned his first win as head coach of the Titans on March 7th, 2024 with a 2-0 victory over North Alabama. Detroit Mercy also earned its first #HLSB series win since 2019 after taking two of three from Green Bay, and also earned their first Metro Series win since 2019 with a 2-1 victory over rival Oakland.     After his three seasons at Detroit Mercy (2016-19), Vitale served as the Head Coach for the Dakota High School where he complied a 93-18-1 record over five seasons leading the Cougars to three consecutive MAC (Macomb Area Conference) Red titles and three straight District crowns. He also helped Dakota claim two Regional titles along with a Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) State quarterfinal appearance and runner-up finish in 2021.   Additionally, Vitale is a two-time MAC Coach of the Year (2021, 2023) and Regional Coach of the Year (2021, 2022) and All-County Coach of the Year (2023). He also coached the 2022 High School All-Star team and under his guidance over the past three seasons, six Dakota student-athletes are playing softball at the Division I collegiate level.   Vitale is the President and Founder of the Michigan Batbusters Softball Organization since 2009, which has helped over 100 student-athletes play collegiate softball, and is the United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA) Fast Pitch Elite Program Director. He also was an Assistant Coach at Macomb Community College helping the Monarchs to a conference and regional championship in 2015.   During his coaching tenure, Vitale also served as the Head Groundskeeper for the Chippewa and Dakota High School district where he oversaw all 25 school grounds to ensure they were safe for athletic and community use.   Prior to his time at Chippewa and Dakota, Vitale served as General Manager and Lead Hitting Instructor for Total Sports Complex. He also founded, owned, and operated Vitale’s Perfect Game Training Facility for indoor baseball and softball for 12 years.   Vitale started his professional career as the Manager of Corporate Security Investigations and Loss Prevention at Standard Federal Bank and earned his way to become the First Vice President of LaSalle Bank (Bank of America).   A native of Sterling Heights, Mich., Vitale earned a Bachelor Degree in Business Administration at Cleary University in 1998. He is also a 2004 USSSA Michigan Hall of Fame inductee as a player and manager and is ABN Amro-Six Sigma Greenbelt certified.  

Rob Ward brings 25 years of coaching experience to the Detroit Mercy coaching staff with a history of helping high school student-athletes achieve their dreams of playing softball in all divisions at the collegiate level.   Ward has been a part of the Anchor Bay High School softball program since 2017-18 while serving as a Varsity Assistant Coach since 2020 where his responsibilities include overseeing hitting, infield mechanics, base running and player development. He has helped guide the Tars to a 132-50 overall record, two Metro Area Conference (MAC) Red co-championships, three district titles and three regional appearances.   Ward also served as an Assistant Coach with Michigan Batbusters 16U softball team helping the squad to a 28-1-3 record and three college showcase tournaments titles during the 2023 season. All of the student-athletes on the Batbuster roster will be attending college earning academic and athletic softball scholarships in 2024 with four players competing at the Division I level.   Additionally, Ward spent time as an Advanced Hitting and Fielding Instructor at Vitale’s Perfect Game and Total Sports and was a Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) official for 15 years and USA Hockey for 17 years.   Off the field, Ward currently serves as an internationally appointed UAW trainer and facilitator in leadership for Stellantis representing over 1100 employees in the Local 212 membership since 1999.   Ward earned Health and Safety Specialist Certification from Baker College and is certified in diversity and emotional well-being. He also was a multi-sport student-athlete at De la Salle Collegiate High School (1982-85) and Tower High School (1986).

Christina Skalsky (Scale-Ski) was named Assistant Coach of the Detroit Mercy softball team in the Fall of 2024 and brings over 20 years of pitching coach experience to the Titans.   Skalsky served as Assistant Varsity Coach at L’Anse Creuse North High School for three years (2020-23) and spent 12 years as an Assistant Coach for the Michigan Batbusters travel team (2010-22), helping many student-athletes sign and continue their love to play collegiate softball.   Skalsky also spent time as the Pitching Coach at Northwood University in 2005, where she helped guide one of the greatest turnarounds in program history. The 2005 team earned 34 overall wins while going 14-6 in league play, earning the first conference championship in school history. Her pitching staff won the most games while recording the most strikeouts, shutouts, and lowest ERA in school history. The Timberwolves also made their first appearance in the NCAA tournament in program history advancing to the quarterfinals. For their accomplishments, the 2005 team was inducted into the Northwood Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2024.   Skalsky was a student-athlete pitcher for the softball team at Saginaw Valley State where she served as team captain and president of the Student Athletic Advisory Committee (SAAC) earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration in 2004.   Skalsky earned a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) from Northwood University in 2005 and has been working as a purchasing/supply chain lead in the automotive industry for over 18 years.   She also was a graduate of Harper Woods Regina High School in 2000, earning all-academic, all-district, and honorable mention all-region honors as a standout pitcher on the softball team.

Dani Keighley joined the Detroit Mercy softball coaching staff as a Graduate Assistant Coach. With a proven record of athletic excellence and academic achievement after an accomplished playing career, Keighley brings a strong competitive drive, a deep understanding of the game, and a strong leadership background to the coaching staff. She will be pursuing a Master of Business Administration (MBA) Degree at UDM.   A standout third baseman at the University of Northwestern Ohio, Keighley was a four-year starter and one of the most decorated athletes in program history.   Keighley holds several UNOH program records, including single-season RBI (70) and multi-RBI games in a season (17), both of which rank first in school history. She also posted a .622 career slugging percentage, which is the second-highest mark in program history. A respected team leader, she served as captain for the 2024–25 season and was honored as UNOH’s Female Athlete of the Year.   She led the team to a 2024-25 Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) Tournament Championship and NCAA regional appearance.   Keighley earned NAIA Scholar-Athlete honors three times (2023, 2024, 2025) and was a member of the WHAC All-Academic Team in 2024 and 2025. She was named WHAC Player of the Week in back-to-back weeks in both 2024 and 2025, earned NAIA Hitter of the Week in 2024, and received First Team All-Conference recognition in 2024 and 2025 after being named Second Team All-Conference in 2022 and 2023. Keighley was selected to the NCFA All-Region First Team in 2024 and Second Team in 2025, and she capped her senior year as a member of the NFCA NAIA All-American Second Team.   Keighley graduated in 2025 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Sport Marketing and Management.   Before beginning her collegiate career, Keighley was a four-year varsity starter at first base for Anchor Bay High School. Her high school résumé includes All-Macomb County selections in 2018, 2019, and 2021; multiple MAC Red All-Academic honors; and recognition from the Michigan High School Softball Coaches Association at the district, regional, and All-State levels. She was named the 2021 MAC Red Division MVP, earned a spot on the 2021 MHSSCA All-State First Team, and was selected as the 2021 Macomb County Player of the Year. She also earned the school’s Varsity A Award in 2018, 2019, and 2021.

Taylor Moceri comes to Detroit Mercy after spending six years a Head Coach for the Michigan Batbusters high-level travel softball team where she led recently led the team to three tournament championships and 28-1-3 overall record during the 2023 summer season. She also served as the varsity softball Head Coach at L'Anse Creuse North High School for three years since 2020.   Additionally, Moceri currently serves as a Senior Accountant at Ferrous Processing & Trading since 2018 where she compiles and analyzes financial information to prepare entries to general ledger accounts while documenting business transactions along with preparation of annual personal property tax and sales tax returns.   Moceri also was a standout softball student-athlete at the University of Michigan-Dearborn where she was a three-time First-Team All-Conference selection, two-time team captain and 2022 Hall of Fame Inductee. In 2017, she helped the Wolverines earn a Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) regular season championship while earning WHAC All-Conference Defensive Team, WHAC Player of the Week and NAIA Player of the Week honors while being named UM-Dearborn Female Athlete of the Year.   Moceri finished as the UM-Dearborn career record holder for batting average (.386), hits (186), runs scored (123) and stolen bases (51) and also holds single-season records for batting average (.445), hits (81), runs (52), stolen bases (21) and stolen base percentage (.954). Her career stats include 182 games played, 239 hits, 162 runs, 91 RBI and an overall career batting average of .381.   Moceri earned a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree with a concentration in accounting in 2017.