WACO, Texas — When the NCAA Men’s College World Series kicks off this weekend in Omaha, McLennan Baseball fans will have several reasons to tune in. Two former Highlander standouts will take the field in Omaha with their respective teams, Bailey Horn with the Auburn Tigers and Dylan Neuse with the Texas Tech Red Raiders.
Horn, a redshirt sophomore pitcher and West, Texas native, was a member of the Highlanders’ squad for the 2017 and 2018 seasons. As a freshman in 2017, he appeared in 17 games posting 7-0 record with a 3.86 ERA while striking out 77 batters in 77 innings of work. He was a first-team all-conference and an all-region selection.
Neuse played outfield for the Highlanders in 2018. As a freshman, he played in 58 games for the Highlanders recording .333 batting average with seven doubles, seven triples and eight home runs. He picked up 44 RBIs with 19 stolen bases and 61 runs scored.
Texas Tech will open the series at 1 p.m. Saturday against Michigan on ESPN. Auburn will face Mississippi State at 6:30 p.m. Sunday on ESPN2.
Auburn and Texas Tech aren’t the only squads with ties to McLennan. Arkansas Razorbacks’ head coach Dave Van Horn is also a product of the McLennan Baseball program. Van Horn spent two years as a Highlander infielder, earning all-conference and all-region honors. He was named the NJCAA Region V Player of the Year and was an NJCAA First-Team All-American in 1981.
Arkansas’ connection to McLennan doesn’t stop there. Assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Nate Thompson is the brother of McLennan head coach Mitch Thompson. The Razorbacks will face Florida State at 6 p.m. Saturday on ESPN.
