The Northwestern State sports information office collected a total of eight awards in the annual Louisiana Sports Writers Association’s sports information/communications contest held Sunday afternoon at the conclusion of the LSWA’s annual conference.
Assistant sports information Brad Welborn led the way with four awards, while associate athletic director for media relations Jason Pugh earned two and assistant director of communications Jonathon Zenk and university director of photography Chris Reich each collected one.
Welborn and Reich each grabbed first place honors.
Welborn earned a pair of awards for stories written during the 2025-26 school year, as well as one each for game notes and graphics.
He won first place for a feature on the 15-year mentorship bond between softball coach Jenny Fuller and standout player JT Smith.
Welborn collected second place honors for his graphic on women’s basketball’s Vernell Atamah being named Southland Conference Player of the Year, the first in more than 20 years for the program.
He also collected third place for his feature on NSU quarterback Abram Johnston’s progress from his first collegiate start to his second matchup this past season with that same opponent, East Texas A&M, and Welborn also was rewarded for his softball game notes during the Southland Conference Tournament.
Pugh earned a pair of second-place finishes, including his game story for the NSU football victory over Alcorn State for its first win since November 2022.
He also took home second place for his feature on former Demon baseball legend David Fry, one year after Fry’s appearance in the MLB All-Star game.
Reich joined Pugh with an award for the football win against McNeese and he also joins Welborn as a first-place award winner.
He collected his win with his photograph of Blaine McCorkle earning a Powerade bath following NSU’s season-opening 20-10 victory over Alcorn.
Zenk collected a second-place honor for his feature on women’s basketball player Carla Celaya relishing her role as the hard-working defensive specialist for her team.