ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – Griffon Softball Head Coach Bianca Duran has announced the addition of Jean Melo Fernandez to the coaching staff as an assistant coach.

Melo Fernandez joins MoWest with 10 years of experience in higher education and athletics, bringing a background in coaching, recruiting, player development and program operations.

Most recently, Melo Fernandez served as an assistant coach at Hill College, where he assisted with recruiting, game and practice planning and individual and group instruction.

Prior to his time at Hill, Melo Fernandez served as the head softball coach at Highland Community College during the 2023-24 season. He guided Highland to a 26-26 overall record and a postseason appearance while overseeing recruiting, game strategy and roster development.

Melo Fernandez previously spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Highland from 2021-23. In that role, he assisted with travel, team orders, game and practice planning, individual instruction and the program's strength and conditioning plan.

Before joining Highland, Melo Fernandez served as a volunteer assistant coach at Bethany College during the 2020-21 season. He worked with the pitching staff and helped the program earn a fourth-place finish at the NAIA Softball World Series.

In addition to his coaching experience, Melo Fernandez served as Sports Information Director at Highland Community College. His responsibilities included maintaining statistics, promoting student-athletes, producing press releases, creating graphics and managing the athletics website.

Melo Fernandez earned both his bachelor's degree in Business Administration and Master of Business Administration from Monroe College. He is fluent in English and Spanish.