McKenna Woliczko receives McDonald’s All-American jersey in front of capacity Mitty crowd
SAN JOSE — McKenna Woliczko is officially a McDonald’s All-American.
The five-star Iowa-bound Archbishop Mitty senior received her All-American jersey during a ceremony held Wednesday morning at Mitty, cementing the announcement made a month ago when she was named to the West team.
In front of all of her peers at Mitty’s Fien Gym, Woliczko was honored at the end of a monthly all-school assembly. Her jersey reveal drew the loudest cheers of the morning from the capacity crowd packed into the gym, giving her another special moment in what has been a memorable senior season as she has successfully returned from a debilitating ACL injury.
“It was really exciting and very nerve-wracking,” Woliczko told the Bay Area News Group. “When I’m standing up in front of the school, I start shaking. I almost get more nervous for this than I do playing. But being up there, it was just so cool to see all my classmates and peers clapping and cheering and being so excited for this accomplishment.”
In addition to the full group of over 1,000 Mitty students, teachers and administrators, Woliczko’s coaches were in attendance as well as her parents Aaron and Erica.
“McKenna embodies all that one would hope for in a student-athlete and will be an excellent representation for both McDonald’s as well as Archbishop Mitty High School,” Mitty coach Sue Phillips told this news organization. “Super excited for McKenna. Incredibly well deserved. Certainly will be tuning in.”
The All-American game will be played on March 31 at the Desert Diamond Arena in Phoenix. It will be televised on ESPN2 at 2:30 p.m.
Making the McDonald’s team was a lifelong dream for Woliczko. It is an indisputable status symbol that stands the test of time long after the game ends.
“I remember when I was a kid, just writing down random goals that I had,” Woliczko said. “And I actually have in a notebook, ‘McDonald’s All-American’ on there. So the fact that I get to cross that off is pretty cool.”
Aaron was in the same doctor’s office where McKenna had several visits during her ACL recovery when he got the news that McKenna made the team.
He let out a triumphant expletive when he found out, prompting some raised eyebrows from the staff.
“And all of a sudden, all the nurses that have been working with McKenna through the last year, they poked their heads out of their offices and rooms,” Aaron said. “They were like, ‘She made it?’ So it was exciting for everybody.”
Erica was streaming the reveal concurrently on her phone while waiting for Aaron in the parking lot. They weren’t going to miss that moment, and they definitely weren’t going to miss this one.
“Immediately, we got texts from family and friends who were watching too, and their excitement,” Erica said. “So that was fun.”
For the record, Woliczko does enjoy some McDonald’s from time to time. Her signature order even evokes her nickname, McDub.
“Her order is a McDouble,” Erica said. “They have like a biggie bag, I guess, a $5 bag where it’s a McDouble, a four-piece nuggets, french fries, and then she gets the sweet tea. She gets a little of everything.”
Now, Woliczko will turn her attention back to the court. Mitty starts its run in the CIF NorCal Open Division semifinals on Saturday at home aiming to win its first straight NorCal Open title.
But that was worth putting on hold for a moment. All-American jerseys don’t materialize every day.
“It was so exciting to get a jersey, especially with my name on it,” Woliczko said. “Like, that’s so crazy. There’s only 48 that go out, and it’s crazy to be able to get one of my own. And then also when they raised it and showed the whole entire school, hearing everyone’s cheers was so exciting.”
Woliczko is the second Mitty girls player to make the team in three seasons and the fourth overall. Morgan Cheli, now at UConn, was a McDonald’s All-American in 2024.
Former Mitty stars Haley Jones (2019) and Rometra Craig (2000) also made the team.
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