Mid-Plains Community College Alum Wins National HVAC Championship

A Mid-Plains Community College graduate has earned national recognition after taking first place in the apprentice division of the 2025 ServiceTitan HVAC National Championship.

Braden Reeser, a 2023 graduate of the MPCC HVAC program and native of Ogallala, Nebraska, clinched the national title earlier this month in West Palm Beach, Florida, after earning a spot in the apprentice division of the competition.

The event brought together the country’s most promising HVAC technicians and professionals to test their skills in real-world diagnostic and repair challenges.

“I started the process just for fun,” Reeser said. “A coworker told me about it, so I took a few online tests while traveling for work. I kind of forgot about it—until I got a call a few months later saying I made it to the finals.”

The finals consisted of two rounds. The first round featured 10 national finalists selected from hundreds of online applicants.  While the first round was tough, Reeser said he relied on daily experience and strong fundamentals learned at MPCC to succeed.

“Getting to the second round, it was, now there's money on the line. Now I have got to win it,” he joked. “Even if I hadn’t won, the experience alone—meeting new people and seeing Florida for the first time—was worth it.”

The competition awarded $100,000 total prize pool, which was shared between the top-performing professionals and apprentices.

Reeser attributes his success to the strong technical foundation he received at MPCC, as well as his professional experience with Springer’s Appliance in Ogallala and Knobel Refrigeration in North Platte, both of which supported him during his time as a student and early in his career.

Now with nearly five years of expertise in the field, Reeser says the best part of working in HVAC is twofold: every day is different—and the paycheck is good.

“I would encourage anyone unsure about their future to consider community college,” he added. “It’s affordable, efficient and gives you a head start in the workforce.”

Looking ahead, the newly crowned champion is considering a future in industrial HVAC or even a shift into law enforcement. But no matter the path, he says his time at MPCC gave him the tools to succeed.

“This program teaches you the basics that you’ll use every day,” he said. “From HVAC and plumbing to light welding and carpentry—it’s a jack-of-all-trades field. And Mid-Plains got me started.”