Eight McLennan athletes sign Letters of Intent

Eight McLennan Community College athletes signed National Letters of Intent this afternoon, solidifying their plans to continue their academic and athletic careers at four-year colleges next fall. 
 
Basketball guard Shannon Bogues signed with Stephen F. Austin State University. The sophomore from Killeen is averaging 19.4 points for the Highlanders this season and earned North Texas Junior College Athletic Conference Player of the Week honors for Oct. 30-Nov. 4. As a freshman, he helped lead the Highlanders to the program's first trip to the NJCAA National Tournament since 1998. He was second on the team with a 16.1 point-per-game average, earning the NTJCAC Freshman of the Year award and was a first-team all-conference selection.
 
Women's golfer Caitlin Brown signed with Sam Houston State University. Brown, a sophomore from New Braunfels, competed in all four of the Highlassies' tournaments this fall, recording two top-10 finishes individually and helping lead the team to three top-5 finishes.
 
Six members of the Highlanders' baseball team signed with four-year programs.
 
Infielder Brendan Venter signed with Auburn University. The Flower Mound native appeared in 55 games last season, recording a .385 batting average with 17 doubles and led the team with 15 home runs and 69 RBIs. He was a first-team all-conference selection.
 
Catcher Nic Motley, from Southlake, is headed to Virginia Tech. As a freshman, he appeared in 34 games recording a .186 batting average with 20 RBIs. He had a .987 fielding percentage with 210 putouts and caught 10 runners stealing.
 
Outfielder Joe Breaux signed with the University of Alabama. The sophomore from Tomball had the second-highest batting average last season at .393 with 28 RBIs.
 
Outfielder Chris Roller and pitcher Palmer Wenzel will remain teammates at the University of Texas at San Antonio next fall. Roller, an Austin native, had a .347 batting average with 21 RBIs last season and won the NJCAA Award for Superior Academic Achievement with a 3.69 GPA. Wenzel, from Boerne, made 15 appearances on the mound, recording a 1-1 record with one save and a 6.05 ERA with 19 strikeouts.
 
Jason Blanchard will play for Lamar University. A Kingwood native, Blanchard appeared in eight games at the University of Rhode Island as a freshman, recording a 0-3 record with 13 strikeouts and a 9.22 ERA.