PREP SPORTS COMMENTARY: Whistleblower Malta gets her due

By TERRY MONAHAN - Staff Writer | Tuesday, September 16, 2008 12:17 AM PDT ∞

Patsy Malta became a girls volleyball official right after she graduated from Kearny High.

She kept drawing assignments when she went to San Diego Mesa College and later San Diego State.

"It was just a way to make some easy money for college," said Malta, the longtime boys volleyball coach at Mt. Carmel.

Within three years, Malta was doing NCAA and NAIA matches. And she was still in college.

That dedication is about to be rewarded. Malta and nine other officials will be inducted Tuesday night into the San Diego Sports Officials Hall of Fame in a ceremony at the San Diego Hall of Champions. Among the inductees is NFL official Mike Carey, who became the first black referee in Super Bowl history earlier this year.

"I'm kind of honored to be in with a group that includes Mike Carey,'' said Malta, 54. "He's a big-time guy in this profession. Kind of makes me wonder how I got in."

Malta now officiates matches for five college conferences: the Pacific 10, Big West, Mountain West, West Coast and Big 12. She has officiated five Final Fours.

At Mt. Carmel, Malta has won four CIF San Diego Section titles in 22 years coaching the Sundevils. The women's college season occurs in the fall, but Malta has still found time to coach Mt. Carmel's lower-level girls teams during that time.

"I just liked refereeing too much,'' Malta said. "Whenever I do a game that's on TV, my players all give me a bad time when I come back to school on Monday.''

Sitting on the bench, though, presents Malta with an interesting dilemma.

"The way I look at it, I hate getting yelled at as a referee," she said. "If it's a judgment call, let it go because you won't win that argument.

"A bad rules interpretation, I say more. It's hard to not always get out of my seat during a match. Sometimes the kids will tell me I got a call right when I do say something."

The other officials to be inducted are Steve Coover (football), Cal Evans (football, basketball), James Gilchrist (basketball), Bob Kauffman (softball), Linda Powell (basketball), Jim Sibbet (football), Bill Tellous (football-basketball) and Hans Kramm (soccer).

Legends praise

Bob Champion, the former boys soccer coach at Poway, and Stormy Sexton, the late tennis coach at Oceanside, Vista and Rancho Buena Vista, are among a group of coaches to be honored by the Hall of Champions on Nov. 12 at the Scottish Rite Center in Mission Valley.

Champion's Titans won two section titles in his 32 seasons. He compiled a 483-180-98 record.

Sexton's team captured section crowns in 1986 and '87 at Vista.

The other honorees are former coaches Dave Gonzalez (Southwest, Eastlake baseball), Rob Gorney (University baseball, track), Gary McDonald (Morse track), Steve Miner (Clairemont, Madison, Kearny football, softball, golf), Bob Oliver (Serra, Scripps Ranch cross country, track) and Manny Sandoval (Monte Vista cross country, track).

Meritorious achievement awards are earmarked for Bill Bailey, Marla Knox, Byron Shewman and former CIF commissioner Kendall Webb.

Contact staff writer Terry Monahan at (760) 739-6648 or tmonahan@nctimes.com.