NMJC names Mefford head coach of Lady Thunderbirds

(Courtesy of NMJC Office of Communication)

New Mexico Junior College Athletic Department is excited to announce the appointment of Austin Mefford as the new women's basketball head coach. Mefford is leaving the head coaching position at Seward County College in Liberal, KS where he was 55-11 in two seasons and made the NJCAA National Tournament in both. In 2019, not only did the Lady Saints finish the regular season ranked second nationally on the court, but finished ranked sixteenth in the WBCA Academic Top 20.
Before coaching at Seward he was the assistant coach at Gulf Coast CC in Florida where his team won two National Championships. He helped lead them to three Panhandle Conference Championships, three Region 8 Championships, and back-to-back NJCAA National Championships in 2016 and 2017. Mefford was named the 2019 Jayhawk West Division Conference Coach of the Year. His players have earned Conference Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, three Freshman of the Year, and ten players have been named All-Conference.
Prior to Gulf Coast State, he spent 4 seasons as Director of Basketball Operations and assistant women's basketball coach with Division I Coastal Carolina University. Mefford says recruiting is unique at this time due to COVID-19 but does have many ball players on his radar and several returning players. "We need kids that can make shots and be smart on the court but also get their job done in the classroom, good quality character kids to build a successful program," says Mefford. He is doing his best to showcase the program and NMJC as a whole to build relationships with potential players.
Mefford's goals for the program are to pick up where former coach Sanders left off and continue to flourish at a national scale as he did. "The goal is to win a national championship and continue to build the program to that level."
He is excited to meet the NMJC staff and Hobbs community and feels it is a place that well embraces athletics, particularly basketball. Not only did the success of the women's basketball program over the last decade intrigue Mefford, but also the success of the college itself. "You look at things from the outside and see what Dr. Sharp has done with the college, not just on campus but also athletics was very enticing," he says.
Athletic Director Deron Clark is excited to have Mefford as a part of NMJC's coaching staff. He says his recruiting contacts, experience, and knowledge of the game will work well for Mefford as he steps into a team that will only see a few returners.
"NMJC is very fortunate to have another coach enter in the footsteps of Drew Sanders that can provide the leadership and consistency seen over the past 13 seasons," says Clark.