Every spring, the HC Angels pack their bags and head to Dayton, Tennessee, for one of the most anticipated weeks of the baseball season: the National Association of Christian Athletes (NACA) national tournament.
Teams travel from across the country to compete for a national title. For our Angels, though, NACA has always meant more than the games. It is a week of fellowship, faith, fun, and competition—and a tradition our players look forward to year after year.
Tuesday Traditions: Pizza, Surprises, and the Trip Up the Mountain
Our NACA week begins on Tuesday with everyone gathering at Point Park. Before heading up the mountain, HC hosts a pizza party under the pavilion—a chance to eat together, catch up, and enjoy the excitement of another nationals trip.
We also love preparing a little NACA surprise for our boys. This year, each player received an HC backpack filled with snacks, Gatorade, and water to help carry him through the busy days ahead. It’s a small tradition with a lot of love behind it, and one more way to let our Angels know how much they mean to us.
After the pizza party, it’s time to head up the mountain to Fort Bluff, where the boys settle into Brown Deer Lodge, unpack, and get ready for the tournament. There’s always a special feeling about arriving there: another week together, another chance to compete, and another collection of memories waiting to be made.
Rain Delays and a Thursday Doubleheader
The tournament schedule normally has our Angels playing Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. But baseball has a way of reminding everyone that even the best-laid plans are subject to the weather.
In 2026, rain washed out our Wednesday games, pushing them into a Thursday doubleheader. It wasn’t the start we’d expected, but the Angels adjusted and got ready for a full day of baseball.
At NACA, teams from all over the country come together with the same goal: to compete for a national championship. The competition matters. So do the effort, character, and sportsmanship our players bring to the field each time they put on an HC uniform.
All the Moments Between the Games
Ask our players what they remember about NACA, and you’ll hear about much more than innings and scores.
There’s the time spent together at Fort Bluff—playing putt-putt, volleyball, human foosball, and gaga ball, or simply taking in the beautiful mountain views and the nature all around them. There’s the Strawberry Festival and a meal at one of our favorite stops, 1st Avenue Pizza and Books.
There are late-night slushie runs to Sonic, parents visiting and fellowshipping in the hotel lobby, and siblings making their own memories in the indoor pool. Sometimes the best conversations happen when the day’s games are over and nobody is quite ready to call it a night.
That’s part of what makes this week so special. The players are teammates on the field, but at NACA, our families get to spend time together away from the usual rush of the season. Those shared meals, games, conversations, and little adventures become memories of their own.
Third in the Nation
Friday brought the final games of our 2026 NACA run, and the HC Angels finished third in the national tournament.
We are proud of our boys and the work they put into another season. A third-place finish among teams that traveled from across the country is an accomplishment worth celebrating—and another chapter in HC Baseball history.
One Last Night Together
Even after the final games on Friday, nobody is in much of a hurry for NACA week to end. Our families stay one more night for fun, fellowship, and the chance to enjoy being together before we head home.
By Saturday morning, there are some very sleepy baseball players loading into vehicles. After staying up late—and, in some cases, practically all night—having the time of their lives, many are ready to doze off on the ride home.
And somehow, before we’ve even made it down the mountain, the conversation has already turned to the same familiar words: “Can’t wait until next year!”
More Than a Tournament
NACA marks the close of our HC baseball season, but it gives us so much more than a final place in the standings. It gives our players the opportunity to compete, our families time to be together, and all of us memories that will last long after the equipment is packed away.
Years from now, we hope our Angels remember the games and the pride of finishing third in the nation. But we also hope they remember the pizza under the pavilion, the backpacks waiting for them, the mountain views, the slushies, the laughter, and the friendships that made the week feel like something they never wanted to end.
Because that’s what this trip has always been about. We go to NACA to play baseball. We come home with so much more.
Building HERITAGE
Honor • Effort • Respect • Integrity • Trust • Accountability • Growth • Excellence