MCC Softball starts fall camp with interim Coach Kelsey Gillen

Thanks to McCook Community College SID Brent Cobb

After two straight appearances in the National Junior College Athletic Association Division 1 College World Series, the McCook Community College softball team begins fall camp with a new place to practice and scrimmage, and an assistant coach leading the team as interim head coach.

Kelsey Gillen, a 2013 MCC graduate, former softball player and assistant coach for the 2025 squad was named interim coach to start the season.

She takes over for Mike Mendenhall, who received back-to-back District Coach of the Year Awards but left McCook in July to take the head coaching job at Paris Junior College in Texas.

“As we are working though the search the important thing on the softball side of things was to make sure our student athletes are taken care of when school started for practice and for them to have someone to lead them,” said MCC Athletic Director Jon Olsen. “It’s never a great time to have coach leave but late in the summer always makes it tough with a new team coming in shortly.”

Gillen said her year as MCC Assistant was one of the most rewarding experiences of her coaching career.

“Being part of a team that won a Region IX championship and earning a trip to the NJCAA World Series reinforced what I value most about coaching: building relationships, creating a positive culture, and developing athletes who believe in themselves and one another,” she said.

MCC’s Interim coach has been coaching softball for 13 years at a variety of levels, starting with an 8U travel softball team and staying with that same group all the way through 18U. She is entering her eighth year as a high school assistant coach and continues to coach summer travel softball.

“Kelsey really stepped up and has done a great job with our ladies in the interim,” said Olsen. “She has a great softball mind and love for the game, she is part of a great softball family, and has done a great job with them to start the year.”

Gillen played competitive softball from 8U through college, earning All-State and All-Conference honors in high school. At MCC she was named First Team All-Region IX and became the program’s all-time home run record holder until 2022.

The Lady Indians established a program-record 49 regular season wins (49-7) and went 30-2 in Region IX to claim the regular-season championship. The team was tops in Region IX in runs scored (517), batting average (.375), homers (70) and stolen bases (157) as well as team ERA. (2.29). MCC went 25-1 at the Jaycees Sports Complex and finished the regular season with an 11-game winning streak.

“I want to create a culture centered on hard work, accountability, academic success, and continuous improvement while recruiting student-athletes who embrace those same values,” she said. “My vision is to build a competitive program that consistently competes for championships while preparing our players for success long after their playing careers are over.”

MCC returns three players who were named to the all-Region IX team. Hannah Schneider, Lyndsay Keogh earned first-team honors and Brooklynn Gillen received honorable mention.

In April, at the 2026 MCC Athletic Banquet, the softball team won the award for MCC’s top academic team with a team grade-point average of 3.54. MCC Softball also earned a designation from the NJCAA as an “Academic Team of the Year,” with a composite team GPA of 3.46 (using academic different parameters). Eleven players were named to NJCAA All-Academic teams and 15 to the Region IX Women’s All-Academic team.

“Success on the field is important, but I believe lasting success begins with trust, discipline, and a genuine investment in each player,” said Gillen.

The team will have its first fall scrimmage Sunday in the new facility when the Lady Indians host Hastings College in a doubleheader starting at 1 p.m. The fall scrimmage schedule is being finalized and will be published on the MCC Athletics web site.

MCC Softball starts fall camp with interim Coach Kelsey Gillen

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