BRISTOL, Tenn. – King University assistant athletic director for athletic communications and external affairs
Travis Chell and assistant director of athletic communications
Stevie Larson were selected by their peers as the Conference Carolinas Athletic Communications Staff of the Year.
The award, in its second year, is voted on by the Conference Carolinas athletic communications professionals.
The tandem works together to promote all 28 Tornado teams, serving as the intermediary between the athletic department and the local and national media. They highlight the academic and athletic achievements of all Tornado student-athletes, coaches and administrators.
"I am really excited to see Travis and Stevie honored for their hard work and dedication to King," Conference Carolinas Commissioner Chris Colvin said. "They are both always willing to go above and beyond for King and Conference Carolinas. I was reminded of this during the weekend we hosted our Men's Volleyball Championship at King along with Travis and Stevie making sure their baseball and softball series were handled top-notch. It's a balancing act and their efforts along with all of our first-class athletic communication professionals helps us tell our amazing story in Conference Carolinas."
Larson completed his second year in the King athletic communications office, helping promote the more than 400 student-athletes. He has been instrumental in the growth of the athletic communications office of the last two years, helping improve the broadcasts on the Tornado Sports Network as well as the game day operations. A native of White Bear Lake, Minn., Larson graduated from Minnesota State Moorhead in 2019 with a degree in multimedia journalism.
During the 2022-23 season, the duo helped King host a women's wrestling regional as well as the men's volleyball conference championship. The 2022-23 season also marked the first time King used multicamera shoots for the majority of their broadcasts on the Tornado Sports Network.
"Travis and Stevie are amazing! The volume of work they do, the quality of the work, and their passion for King student-athletes is unmatched" King vice president for athletics
David Hicks said. "This honor is well-deserved for our entire athletic communication staff, they are all superstars!"
Chell completed his 14th year in the athletic communications professional and 10th year at King University in 2022-23 after stops at the University of Memphis and Edgewood College. A native of Grantsburg, Wis., he graduated with a degree in mathematics from Lakeland College in 2009 complete his master's degree in business administration in 2012 from Edgewood College. Chell has served as the chair of the Conference Carolinas athletic communicators since 2015 and In 2021 was voted a member of the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Division II Regional Board, representing the southeast region.
He serves as a regional coordinator for the D2SIDA men's basketball poll as well as a regional voter on the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) southeast region poll. Chell also coordinates the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) women's wrestling poll and wrestlers of the month.
"It is such an honor to be selected for this award by our peers," Chell said. "Stevie and I are fortunate to be a part of a such a great group of people in Conference Carolinas. This year was great for King University and we enjoyed highlighting our great student-athletes and staff and we look forward to continuing in 2023-24."
