The two-time state championship-winning head baseball coach for St. Andrew’s Episcopal School is stepping down after 29 years.
St. Andrew’s announced Tuesday morning that Mark Fanning is retiring as head coach after accumulating a 626-324 record and winning 20 division and five MHSAA South State titles. He also won two state titles – one in 3A in 2018 and another in 2A in 2024.
Taking over as head coach will be former assistant coach Josh Newell. Newell has been with the Saints for three years and was a part of Fanning’s staff in 2024 when they won the 2A state championship over East Union High School.
As the skipper of the Saints for nearly three decades, Fanning earned numerous accolades. His most prominent were the state titles, as well as his 2026 induction into the Crossroads Diamond Club Hall of Fame – a hall of fame that recognizes contributions to high school baseball in Mississippi.
In addition, Fanning is a two-time Mississippi Scoreboard All-Metro Jackson Coach of the Year and was named the Mississippi Association of Coaches Baseball Coach of the Year in 2025.
According to St. Andrew’s, Fanning will remain the school’s director of athletic facilities while also serving in other roles within the athletic department.
