RAINSVILLE — Shouts of “play ball” will soon echo around the campus of Northeast Alabama Community College.
The Mustangs will field their first women’s softball team in the spring and Friday the school will unveil a state-of-the-art stadium with a grand opening celebration and field naming ceremony. It all starts at 10 a.m. and the public is invited.
“We are very pleased and excited about the opening of this stadium,” said NACC President Dr. David Campbell. “There already is much excitement about our women’s softball team. Their league competition begins in the spring of 2025, and they will be playing and training at one of the finest and most modern women’s softball facilities in the South.
“We are so proud to offer this to our students and community. Come out and take part in our dedication day ceremony for what will be a very happy occasion.”
Campbell said the stadium will be named for Alabama House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter of Rainsville. He cited Ledbetter’s strong support for the project and the Rainsville-DeKalb County area.
“We will be naming the stadium after our area’s own Speaker of the House Representative Nathaniel Ledbetter in honor of his leadership for our area, the region, and the state,” said Campbell. “It will be named Nathaniel Ledbetter Stadium with the playing field itself called Mustang Field.”
The stadium includes an artificial turf field, LED lighting, video scoreboard, and grandstands that will seat 400 spectators plus an ample amount of room for fans to sit or stand down each foul line with a total capacity of about 600 fans.
There also is an indoor training facility with locker rooms, batting cages, pitching lanes, office space for coaches, a nutrition bar, and more.
“We appreciate the efforts of Dr. Campbell, Nathaniel Ledbetter and many others for making this extraordinary softball project happen,” said Mustangs head coach Joe Guthrie. “It would not happen without them. The NACC softball team will be proud custodians of this gift.”
Guthrie was hired at Northeast in 2023 from Texas A&M where he was an assistant coach. He has nearly 20 years of experience including head coach at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and head coach at Marion Military Institute, a fellow member of the Alabama Community College Conference.
In August, NACC named Jimmy Kolaitis its first full-time athletic director. An Alabama native, he has more than 20 years of experience capped by the last four years at Arizona State University as an assistant softball coach.Most recently, Kolaitis was on staff for the 2024 silver medal U.S. National Team at the World Baseball Softball Confederation World Championship.
“These are exciting times at Northeast Alabama Community College,” said Kolaitis. “This started with the vision of Dr. Campbell and has been supported by so many people. We are grateful for the support from our community, especially that of Alabama Speaker of the House Nathaniel Ledbetter.
“This will be one of the best softball facilities in the state of Alabama.”
McKee & Associates provided architecture services and Sports Turf led the stadium construction. Local contractor P&C Construction completed the training facility.
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