Head Baseball Coach
Coach Mellen is entering his first season coaching Baseball at Northside Christian Academy. Before becoming head varsity baseball coach, he was the head hitting coach/ assistant coach at Toccoa Falls College.
Coach Mellen has 6 years of college baseball coaching-related experience and over 14 years of coaching experience. Coach Mellen has experience coaching under several former MLB all-stars, MLB rookie of the year, hall-of-fame players, and college coaching legends. He has coached all ages from collegiate scholarship athletes to the youth, travel teams to national title-winning teams.
Coach Mellen played collegiately for LaGrange College and Claflin University. During his time at both schools, he obtained two conference championships, lettered every year, and was awarded NCAA all-academic conference player three years in a row. Coach Mellen double majored in business administration and sports management, graduating valedictorian in the sports management department from Claflin University while obtaining minors in finance and accounting.
Coach Mellen comes to Northside as a father to Meredith Grace Mellen(2) and a loving husband to Leigha Hite Mellen. His favorite proverb is 27:17 “as only iron strengthens iron, only a man can strengthen a man”.
“I look forward to the opportunity to bring glory to God by setting a standard of excellence on and off the field at Northside Christian”.
Assistant Coach
Andrew (Andy) Onello joins the Northside Varsity Coaching staff with more than 20+ years of playing experience and 7+ years of coaching experience. Andy's playing career culminated as a player/coach in the Blue-Gray Baseball League in Washington, DC. where he played 2nd and 3rd base, catcher, and relief pitcher. He transitioned from player/coach in the adult leagues to coaching t-ball, coaches pitch, and kid pitch developing the next generation of baseball players ranging in age from 5 years old to 14 years old. Andy guides his players' growth challenging them to push their existing boundaries and leverage life lessons from the Lord both on and off the field
MS Asst. Coach
2022 begins the Walke family’s 11th year at NCA. Andy and Caroline have been married for 21 years and have 3 children. Andrew, a 2020 NCA graduate is a junior at The Citadel, Natalie, 11th grade, runs cross country and plays basketball for NCA and Cooper is in the 7th grade and playing on the NCA middle school football team as well as the shooting sports team.
Andy has been in real estate for 20+ years and Caroline is a nurse in her 26th year with Lexington Medical Center. They both have a passion for Christian education and enjoy being a part of NCA.
Andy is the shooting sports head coach, middle school football head coach and asst. MS baseball coach. He has been an assistant football coach at NCA for the past 9 years, and this will be his 6th season as head coach for the shooting sports team. Caroline has been an assistant on the women’s basketball team for the past several years. Andy is currently the President of the booster club board and has previously served as Vice President and Treasurer.
MS Head Coach
Athletics Director
Coach Howell attended The Citadel where he earned a B.S. in Math (Education). He also earned an M.Ed. in educational leadership from the University of South Carolina six years ago. A native of the Columbia area, Coach Howell attended Brookland-Cayce High School where he played football for the Bearcats. He is married to the former Laura Sherrill of West Columbia, and they are proud parents of Kaleigh Grace (12), Connor Dean (10) and Taylor Elizabeth (5), all Crusaders since day one. They are active members of Northside Baptist Church where Coach Howell leads a life group and serves as a deacon.