Smith named Assistant Coach of the Year

McLennan Softball's Jessica Smith is the 2024 Easton/NFCA NJCAA Division I Assistant Coach of the Year. The award salutes the efforts of coaches for their tireless dedication to the sport of softball and to the continued education, growth and development of young women, both on and off the playing field.

Smith helped lead the Highlanders to a 61-4 overall record, the program's first 60-win season. The squad opened  with a 44-game winning streak and was ranked #1 in the NJCAA poll for the entire season. The team claimed the North Texas Junior College Athletic Conference Championship and the Region V North Champion to earn automatic bid to the DI World Series. McLennan was the top seed at the World Series and went 4-2 in Oxford, Alabama, to finish as the national runner-up. The Highlanders boasted one of the top offenses in the country, ranking first in runs scored (654), base hits (740), triples (61), RBI (582), total bases (1,263) and extra-base hits (290) and second in batting average (.430), on-base percentage (.511) and slugging percentage (.735). They also are ranked second in shutouts (24), third in ERA (1.99) and fifth in opponent's batting average (.216) and WHIP (1.09). The squad included 11 all-conference selections, including the the Most Valuable Player & Pitcher, Katia Reyes, and the Co-Offensive Player of the Year, Trinity Allen. Six players were named all-region, five were NFCA all-region, four were NFCA & NJCAA All-Americans, and Reyes was the Player of the Year for both organizations. The Highlanders also excelled in the classroom and was recognized as NJCAA Academic Team of the Year Honorable Mention with 12 players earning Academic All-District College Division At-Large Teams released by College Sports Communicators (CSC), 12 earning NJCAA All-Academic Team honors, and Reyes being named a 2023-24 Academic All-American.

The staff will be formally recognized at the NFCA Convention's Awards Brunch on Dec. 7 in Dallas.