Coaches

Varsity Head Coach Brian Mahoney brings a wealth of experience to Mercy McAuley with over 20 years of coaching at the high school varsity level and in travel AAU basketball. A Cincinnati native, Coach Mahoney was a three-year varsity basketball and baseball player at La Salle High School. He went on to continue his basketball career at LaGrange College in Georgia and later graduated from Miami University with a degree in Finance and Management. Coach Mahoney’s passion for the game and his dedication to helping student-athletes grow—not only in their basketball skills but also in character—will be a great asset to the program. He currently lives in Lebanon, Ohio, and has two daughters: Madalyn, a junior at Miami University studying Nursing, and Maryn, a freshman at the University of South Carolina studying Biomedical Engineering.

Contact Info:
bmahoney1313@yahoo.com

Varsity Assistant Coach John Christie has been coaching girls basketball for over 10 years. He began as an assistant for his daughter’s 5th-grade AAU team and has been involved in coaching ever since. He spent four years as the freshman head coach and later as a varsity assistant at Bishop Fenwick High School before taking a brief break to watch his daughter play her senior year at Badin High School. In addition to his high school coaching experience, John has coached for multiple AAU programs in the Cincinnati area. He recently completed his third year as head coach of a 2026 AAU team, guiding them through the conclusion of their AAU careers, and he plans to continue coaching with a new team next season. A native of Chicago, John has lived across the East Coast and Midwest and now works as a salesman for a technology company based in Wisconsin. In his free time, he enjoys watching his daughter play college volleyball, volunteering at professional sports events in Cincinnati, and playing golf.

JV Head Coach Natalie Conner, a Cincinnati native, brings both passion and playing experience to her role as JV Head Coach at Mercy McAuley. A graduate of Bishop Fenwick High School, she went on to play four years of collegiate basketball at Franciscan University of Steubenville, where she deepened her understanding of the game and her commitment to developing athletes physically, mentally, and spiritually. Before joining Mercy McAuley, Coach Conner spent a season as a JV assistant at Roger Bacon High School. Off the court, she shares her passion for youth and the Catholic faith as the Coordinator of Youth Ministry at St. Ignatius of Loyola Church. She is excited to help develop both the athletes and the basketball program at Mercy McAuley.

Head Bowling Coach Amy Feie began serving as the Head Varsity Bowling Coach in the 2020-21 season. She has been part of the Mercy McAuley coaching staff since the inaugural school year in 2018-19. The team was GGCL League Champions for the 2020-21, 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons. During the 2020-21 season, the team finished as District Champions and in the top 8 at the State Tournament.

Amy has also been serving as JV Head Coach/Assistant Varsity Softball Coach at Mercy McAuley since the 2018-19 school year. At Mother of Mercy High School, she served as Co-Head Varsity Softball Coach for the 2017-18 season and Assistant Varsity Softball Coach for the 2016-17 season.

Amy is a graduate of Mother of Mercy High School, where she was a four-year member of the bowling and softball programs. She continued her education as a student athlete at Bellarmine University, where she graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication Studies along with minor degrees in Business Administration and Communication Marketing.

Contact Info
amfeie@gmail.com

Coach Tim Bley has over 17 years of experience coaching high school cross country and distance track and field, as well as high school classroom experience as a teacher. Coach Bley has over 40 years as an avid runner.

Along with Coaches Rick Witte and Natalie Lienhart (’16 McAuley), Coach Bley has been Mercy McAuley’s coach since 2019, and Mercy McAuley Cross Country Teams have posted a 561-251 record. The team has 1 GGCL title, 2 District Championship titles, and 1 Regional Championship title. They have qualified as a team to the Ohio State Meet 2 of the last 3 years, and in ,Mercy McAuley runner Abby Sewell '25 was the State Runner Up. 

Coach Bley is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati, with a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics and a Master of Arts in Education from the College of Mount Saint Joseph. He is also a retired Cincinnati Police officer who has had leadership roles in fitness training for the Police Academy and the Cincinnati Police Department. Coach Bley and his wife, Pauline, are active members of St. Jude parish, and his family has a strong commitment to Mercy education and the Mercy McAuley community. Coach Bley’s wife (Pauline- ’85 Mercy), 3 daughters (Ellen-’13 Mercy, Emma- ’15 Mercy, and Leah-’20 Mercy McAuley), and sister (Karen- ’94 Mercy) are all graduates of Mercy Education.

Contact Info:
mercymcauleycc@gmail.com
(513) 608-4060

Julia is a recent graduate of Xavier University, where she earned her degree in nursing and was a four-year member of the dance team. With an extensive list of dance background experience, Julia comes to us from the Toledo School for the Arts in her hometown of Toledo, Ohio. Julia will begin her role as Mercy McAuley's dance coach in the 2024-25 school year.

Contact Info:
jvaillant32@outlook.com

David Wolkoff - Head Dive Coach

David started coaching at Ursuline Academy during the 1996-97 season and continued through the 2020 season. He took one season off but returned to the Lions in 2024-25 and is joining Mercy McAuley for the 2025-26 season. He has taken many divers to the state meet and in 2006 his top diver, Jen Funch, won the State Title.

Contact Info:
dbwolkoff@gmail.com

We are currently seeking applicants for the Head Flag Football Coach. Click here for more information.

John began coaching golf 16 years ago at McAuley High School. He has served as both an Assistant Coach and JV Head Coach, and has been the Head Varsity Golf Coach at Mercy McAuley since the 2024–25 season.

A passionate golfer, John introduced the game to his daughters at a young age—both are alumnae of McAuley—and one went on to play at the collegiate level. He enjoys helping his players develop their skills and confidence in a sport they can enjoy for life.

Contact Info:
bumpgolf@mac.com

The 2024-25 season will be Head Coach Kate Calder's 6th season with Mercy McAuley, and her 3rd season as head coach of the Lacrosse program. Kate is a 2015 alumna of McAuley High School, where she was a 4-year varsity player, 2nd Team GGCL All-Star Team, and the first athlete in program history to commit and play for an accredited NCAA university. She played lacrosse at Wheeling Jesuit University from 2015 - 2019, where her honors included MEC Freshman All-Star Team 2015, MEC Conference Champions 2017, and MEC All-Tournament Team 2019. Kate has also been a travel coach with Velocity Lacrosse since 2019, with the following achievements: 2019 Ohio Lacrosse Festival tournament Champions 23/24’s; 2019 Lax Geneva Champions 23/24’s; 2021 Ohio Lacrosse Festival Champions 27/28’s; 2023 NXT The Grail Tournament Champions 30/31’s; 2024 King of Queens Tournament Champions 30/31’s; 2024 Pipe City Runner up 30/31’s

Contact Info:
calderkaitlyn@gmail.com
(513) 800-3103

Contact Info:
jess.stegman@gmail.com
(513) 827-7704

Head Varsity Softball Coach Mark Rave has coached Varsity Softball in Cincinnati for over 22 years at Walnut Hills, Northwest, and now Mercy McAuley. He has also coached 16u, 18u, and 23u travel softball for Cincinnati Reds RBI, Cincy Magic, Cincy Venom, and Cincy Hornets. He has been the Softball Coach at Mercy McAuley since August of 2023.

Contact Info:
ravelandscaping.a@gmail.com

Caitlyn is a Cincinnati native who grew up swimming for the Cincinnati Marlins. She attended St. Ursula Academy in Cincinnati. She recently graduated from St. Bonaventure University, where she swam at the Division I level and was a 2-year team captain. Caitlyn has also served as assistant coach for the St. Bernard Stingrays for two years.

Contact Info:
cclements2003@gmail.com

Assistant Swim Coach Anna Carroll swam for four years at Mercy McAuley and is returning to her alma mater to help lead the Wolves Swim Team. A 2023 graduate, she was also the recipient of the Circle of Mercy Award in her class.

Assistant Swim Coach Reagan Feldman swam for four years at Seton High School and is now a junior at the University of Cincinnati, studying Psychology with the goal of becoming a Child Life Specialist.

Mauricio Vela joined Mercy McAuley for the 2025 Fall season after coaching at Anderson High School. Mauricio is an energetic coach with a lifelong passion for tennis, shaped by his years as a top-level collegiate athlete and youth mentor. He brings a balance of competitive drive, fun-focused coaching, and personalized player development, helping athletes of all ages grow in both skill and confidence.

Originally from Colombia, Mauricio came to the United States on a tennis scholarship. He competed for Southern Arkansas University and Wingate University (NC), where he was a National College Championship Quarterfinalist.

Mauricio holds a Professional Tennis Registry (PTR) Certification for ages 11–19 and is also certified in tennis coaching. Beyond tennis, he is an Open-level racquetball player and a 3.5–4.0 level pickleball competitor.

Contact Info:
mpv4u2@outlook.com

Coach Benning's teams have experienced tremendous success during the short history of the Wolves Track & Field program. The team has finished as team runner-up at the GGCL meet twice, in 2019 and 2025. Several Wolves have won GGCL championships, and a Wolf has been voted as the league Runner of the Year three times (2021, 2022, 2025) and Field Athlete of the year twice (2024, 2025). The Wolves have also performed well on the state level, having placed in individual and/or relay events at the State Championship meet in five consecutive seasons (2021-2025). The Cincinnati Enquirer recognized Coach Benning as the Girls D2 Coach of the Year in 2025, after the team’s 3rd place Team finish at the 2025 State Championships.

Before becoming the head coach at Mercy McAuley, Coach Benning served as the head Track & Field coach at Summit Country Day High School, assistant coach at St. Xavier High School and head coach at McAuley High School.  He coached athletes that competed at the State Championships in 2008, 2013, 2014, and 2015.

Coach Benning is a graduate of Miami University, where he was a 2-sport athlete. He was a 4-year football letter winner, and a member of the 1993 Mid-American Conference Track & Field championship team and winning 4x400 relay squad.

Coaching Experience:
   Mercy McAuley High School
   2019 - Present: Head Coach

   McAuley High School
   2018: Head Coach
   2016-17: Assistant Coach/Sprints

   St. Xavier High School
   2012-15: Assistant Coach/Sprints

   Summit Country Day High School
   2007-10: Head Coach

Contact Info:
mercymcauleytf@gmail.com.

Coach Matt Schardine has been a part of the volleyball coaching staff at Mercy McAuley since 2019 as an assistant coach for the Varsity and JV teams. He also served as assistant volleyball coach at Mother of Mercy High School from 1998-2001.

In addition to his coaching roles at Mercy McAuley and Mother of Mercy, Coach Schardine has spent the past 24 seasons as an assistant varsity coach for St. Xavier High School’s volleyball program. He also previously served as head coach for both Northwest and Purcell Marian High Schools, assistant coach at Oak Hills High School, and a volunteer assistant for the University of Cincinnati volleyball program.