The NWACC Story

From the very first moment, NorthWest Arkansas Community College has seen athletic success at the highest levels.

An NJCAA member school competing in Region 2 (Okla. and Ark.), NWACC has grown its offering to six varsity programs, one coed program, and one club team as of Fall 2026. In five short years, NWACC teams have claimed eight region championships and placed six athletes on the NJCAA All-American list.

The Eagles entered life as a program with the onset of the men's and women's cross country teams in 2021 under head coach Josphat Boit. Boit led the men's team to an NJCAA Region 2 title in its first year and a fifth-place finish at NJCAA nationals.

In 2022, Men's and Women's Cross Country completed their first sweep of the NJCAA Region 2 titles. The teams repeated the regional sweep for a second straight year in 2023, making NWACC the first school in Region 2 history to sweep cross country titles in consecutive years.

Aaron Messer founded the first club-level team at NWACC in October 2023 when he became the Cycling head coach.

Also in Fall 2023, NWACC added its first coed sports program in Esports. Head coach Carlos Merino leads the Esports program, a participant in the NJCAAE.

The Men's Cross Country program won the Region 2 title once again in 2024, then a third men's and women's sweep followed in 2025. Men's Cross Country has won the Region 2 title in all five seasons of its existence and is the only program to win five consecutive region titles.

Esports won its first National Championship in Spring 2025, claiming the NJCAAE Tier 2 Mario Kart title via Jared Astle (Jerdy).

NWACC's newest programs are women's and men's soccer, kicking off in Fall 2026. Athletic director Brooke Brewer made prolific hires in women's coach Nick Marquez and men's coach Dean Johnson.