On Wednesday, a signing ceremony was held at Warren Gym for 10 Brownwood Lion and Lady Lion seniors who will continue their athletic and academic careers collegiately.

Brownwood Lady Lion senior centerfielder Mackenzie Welch is headed for Dallas Christian, but the softball team still has business to tend to with their Region I-4A area playoff series against Krum slated to start Friday in Glen Rose.

“It means a lot,” Welch said of playing softball at the college level. “It’s a new beginning and a new era in my life. I’m moving away, I’m going to be doing my own thing so it’s a new opportunity.”

As for her decision to attend Dallas Christian, Welch said, “The coach was really interested in my travel team as a whole, and I went and toured the school, which is really nice, and I fell in love with it after a few days. I let it sit on my mind, and the longer I let it sit the more I wanted to go.”

Lady Lions softball head coach Cherita Munguia said, “Mackenzie Welch is an athlete that’s easy to be excited for. Her dedication to her teammates, to her coaches, to her grades and to her sport are absolutely unmatched. Mackenzie is a leader both on and off the field. In the school she is someone that walks with pride and has good grades and on the field she leads by example. I’m so glad this group of softball players got to watch her every single day.

“I can’t tell you how proud I am of you because I’m not only proud of the athlete you are, but the person you are,” Munguia told Welch. ‘It was an absolute pleasure and an absolute joy to be your head coach.”

Regarding what she will miss most from her time as a Lady Lion, Welch said, “Definitely my teammates. They are always there for me and always show me so much support and love. I couldn’t ask for better teammates than the ones I have.”