New Coaches are Joining the Maranatha High School Community

Gamal Smalley – Head Girls’ Varsity Basketball Coach

Gamal Smalley has been hired as the next Head Girls’ Varsity Basketball Coach at Maranatha High School. After serving as an assistant coach on the Boys’ Varsity team for the last three seasons, the veteran coach moves over to the girls’ program with over 25 years of coaching experience.

Coach Smalley spent four seasons as an assistant coach at Pasadena City College with legendary Hall of Fame coach and mentor, George Terzian. Coach Smalley made his debut as a head coach at Ribet Academy in 2006 and led them to the CIF Southern Section 5AA Championship Finals. From 2007 to 2009, he was Head Coach and Athletic Director at Blair High School in Pasadena, leading them to a playoff appearance with nine players selected to postseason honors during his two seasons. In three seasons as Head Coach of his alma mater, John Muir High School, Smalley led the Mustangs all the way to the 5AA CIF Championship Finals in 2011.

Smalley has also coached boys and girls in a variety of basketball summer camps including: Michael Jordan’s “Flight School” Basketball Camp, Michael Cooper’s “King D” Basketball Camp, Ryan Hollins’ “Get Buckets” Skills Camp, Pasadena “Bulldog” Basketball Camp, and Tim Tucker’s “Overtime” Basketball Camp.

Smalley graduated from Azusa Pacific University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Business Management and a Master of Arts degree in Organizational Management. He completed his Doctoral studies at Argosy University. Coach Smalley and his wife Natalie are active members of the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and have attended the NABC convention and NCAA Final Four for the last 15 years straight.

The youngest of their eight children is Zachary Smalley, a senior at Maranatha and four-year varsity letterman committed to Greenville College in Illinois. In 2015, both father and son celebrated a CIF-SS 4A Championship together.

“I am honored to have the privilege of serving in this new coaching capacity at Maranatha High. I look forward to providing transformational leadership that will help guide our team to be the best we can be while having a ton of fun doing it,” Smalley said.

Smalley enjoys producing entertainment content for his production company and getting on the floor with his 12 grandchildren. He and his wife live in Altadena, and attend Bethlehem and Fellowship Monrovia Church.

Sam Mahtani – Head Boy’s Soccer Coach

Sam Mahtani has been hired as the next Head Boy’s Soccer Coach at Maranatha High School after serving as an assistant coach this past season.

“I feel so blessed and honored to continue the growth and success of the Boy’s Soccer program at Maranatha High School. Maranatha offers a Christian learning environment in which students are pushed to excel both on and off the field to serve God and the community, and I’m thrilled to be able to help foster that growth in athletics. What excites me the most about Maranatha is having the ability to work within a Christian organization that understands the educational aspects of athletics and invests in students lives in a way that impact them for life,” Coach Mahtani commented.

Sam brings a wealth of soccer experience and knowledge with his previous playing and coaching experience over the past 10 years. He holds a M.A. in Coaching & Athletic Administration from Concordia Irvine, a Business Management degree from Trinity Christian College, and coaching licenses that include a USSF “B” license and NSCAA Goalkeeping license.

In addition to MHS, Sam has been the Head Men’s and Women’s Soccer Coach at Providence Christian College in Pasadena for the past year and a half. Prior to his time in California, he coached at Tennessee Temple University as well as serving on staff with the Tennessee ODP program. He has also spent time coaching in Illinois at Trinity Christian College as well as serving on staff for the Illinois ODP program. While assisting the Trinity Women’s Soccer program, he enjoyed competitive success including berths in the NAIA National Championship in 2011 and the NCCAA National Championships in 2012 and 2013. As a student athlete, he played for Trinity’s Men’s Soccer program from 2007-2009, serving as captain his senior year.

Sam lives in Pasadena and attends Grace Pasadena Church.

Maranatha High School, 169 S. St. John Avenue, Pasadena, (626) 817-4000 or visit www.maranatha-hs.org.