PASSAGES: SANTANA HIGH COACH MARTY NELLIS

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May 21, 2011 (Santee) – Former Santana High School baseball coach Martin "Marty" Nellis, 76, died May 5th of a heart attack. Nellis coached Santana to the 1984 CIF baseball championship and also founded the Barona (now San Diego) Stars semipro baseball team.

 

He coached boys and girls sports at the junior and senior high school level, as well as community college and the San Diego School of Baseball, also spending time with the Oakland A’s minor league baseball team.

 

He studied at San Diego City College and San Diego State University, earning a masters degree from Azusa Pacific. A Navy veteran, he also played baseball at San Diego’s Naval Training Center and spent four years in the Naval Reserve before beginning his teaching career at Morse High School in 1965 and later, Sanstana.
 

A celebration of life memorial service was held May 20 at the Santana High School baseball field.
 

According to an obituary in the Union-Tribune, Nellis enjoyed meetings in his later years with a group of ex-coaches, players and friends at the Lake Murray Café. His last wish was that the meetings should continue, as he stated, “Don’t mess with the lineup.”
 


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