Home Field Advantage

The McLennan Highlanders baseball team made NJCAA history by being the only team in recent years to dominate the national tournament with no losses. It has been 38 years since McLennan last won the tournament, a sign of how difficult it is to triumph over the 10 best junior college programs in the nation. But the team’s hard work under the leadership of Coach Mitch Thompson and his staff paid off, and they brought home the national championship! Click here to follow the Highlanders' championship journey!

An area where the team struggles, though, is with its home field. The McLennan baseball field is nearing 50 years old and suffers from drainage and turf issues and no lights for night games. Softball has a good grass field but cannot host tournaments without lights.

For these reasons, the McLennan Community College Foundation has launched an ambitious fundraising campaign to bring the fields to a competitive advantage with the addition of artificial turf and lights. This initiative is not just about the quality of the student-athlete experience, or the school’s ability to win championships. With its central location in the state, upgraded facilities will enable McLennan to host tournaments, high school playoff games, and camps to put the fields in use almost year-round. According to a recent Perryman Group study, these improvements will have a significant annual economic impact on the Waco economy and will give Waco another point of pride for visitors to our city to enjoy.

Even if you are not a huge sports fan, it is hard to ignore the character education shaped by winning programs like the ones we have at our community college. What really matters most is that the McLennan athletic programs, unlike many 4-year programs, mean opportunity for young people who would not be able to attend college without a scholarship and chance to play the sport they love.

The pledge card below gives information on how you can help level the playing field for the McLennan program and generations of student-athletes to come. Putting higher education opportunities within reach of area students has always been the mission of MCC, and the Home Field Advantage campaign is taking that commitment to the next level. We hope you will join us in this exciting effort to support the quality of programs at McLennan Community College.

Click on the image for more information regarding MCC's Home Field Advantage Campaign or contact:

Kim Patterson, APR, Executive Director
McLennan Community College Foundation
1400 College Drive
Waco, Texas 76708
Phone (254) 299-8604
Fax (254) 299-8484
Email: kpatterson@mclennan.edu