{"id":44703,"date":"2019-03-20T11:22:05","date_gmt":"2019-03-20T16:22:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/?p=44703"},"modified":"2019-03-20T11:22:57","modified_gmt":"2019-03-20T16:22:57","slug":"students-play-key-roles-in-putting-on-ncaa-dii-event%ef%bb%bf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/?p=44703","title":{"rendered":"Students play key roles in putting on NCAA DII event\ufeff"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Diane Gasper-O\u2019Brien
<\/strong>University Relations and Marketing
<\/em>Fort Hays State University students Gabe Warrick and Matt Hastings have been helping record Tiger athletic events for several years.

Last weekend\u2019s NCAA Division II Women\u2019s Central Region Basketball Championships might have topped them all.

Warrick is a senior from Larned, majoring in informatics with an emphasis in media studies. He is a member of the sports production crew for Tiger Media Network, FHSU\u2019s convergent media hub.

Hastings, a native of Topeka, is working on a master\u2019s degree in sport management and works as a graduate assistant in the FHSU Sports Information Office.

They are just two of hundreds of Fort Hays State students who helped make the regional tournament a success.

Warrick\u2019s duties included camera operation, replay, directing, technical directing and graphics work, while Hastings put to good use his expertise in recording statistics, running the video board and generally making sure everything was running smoothly.

Some students returned to campus early from spring break week to work in several areas: concession stands, taking tickets, as parking lot attendants and ushers and with the maintenance crew. Also participating in the event were members of the Tiger pep band; the university\u2019s dance team, the Tiger Debs; and the FHSU cheer squad.

\u201cWe rely heavily on student support for all of our operations. We simply wouldn\u2019t have the manpower without them,\u201d said FHSU Athletic Director Curtis Hammeke. \u201cNot only is this necessary for our ability to put on these events, it also serves as great experience for these students moving into their future.\u201d

And then, of course there were the students who returned from spring break in time to help cheer on the Tigers in Monday\u2019s regional championship game. They added to the raucous crowd of 5,000-plus fans as FHSU battled Southwestern Oklahoma State University, which came out on top, 88-77.

\u201cHosting an event like the NCAA Central Regional once again brings to light the tremendous community support we have here in Hays,\u201d Hammeke said. \u201cVisiting institutions and representatives from the NCAA are in awe of our crowd sizes and the support we have for facilitating such events.\u201d

Warrick and Hastings are two students who felt privileged to help facilitate the regional tournament. They both are transfer students who chose Fort Hays State to continue their education following graduation from community colleges.

\u201cThis was a bigger production than what I was used to,\u201d said Warrick, who came to FHSU in 2017 after two years at Hutchinson Community College. \u201cI got a good start at Hutch, but when you have a building like Hammond Hall here at FHSU, where you have two studios and three different sets, it was really cool to come and see. It was a step up, and I was excited.\u201d

Warrick was particularly intrigued with FHSU\u2019s TriCaster, a product that merges live video, graphics, special effects, etc., into one polished production for viewers.

\u201cThe technology we have here is unrivaled,\u201d he said. \u201cOur production team and live-streaming I\u2019d put up against any in the country.\u201d

Warrick \u00a0said he would even put FHSU up against Division I schools, where underclassmen have to wait their turn for hands-on experience.

\u201cThat\u2019s the great thing about Fort Hays State,\u201d he said. \u201cYou can come in as a freshman and start working with a camera right away. And it doesn\u2019t matter what your major is. We have some in political science, geoscience, music, among others. If they want to come and help, we will teach them. We are here to help them learn.\u201d

Warrick was one of 14 TMN students who helped with the three-day tourney, putting in approximately 25 hours while broadcasting seven games. All that came less than a week after many of the same students worked a six-day shift producing the MIAA tournament at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.

The students involved in the sports production elements of TMN are under the guidance of Russell Heitmann, news and sports director for the organization.

\u201cThe work these kids do is amazing,\u201d Heitmann said. \u201cOur crew comes from multiple academic backgrounds, majors and interests. However, they have been able to come together and put on numerous quality productions throughout the year. I am incredibly proud of the growth from the first home football broadcast to putting on an NCAA regional broadcast event.\u201d

Hastings echoed Warrick\u2019s thoughts on the real-life opportunities available for FHSU students early on in their college careers.

\u201cAs a DII SID worker, I\u2019ve been more exposed to all the sports,\u201d said Hastings, who began working with SID Ryan Prickett during his junior year as an undergraduate student. \u201cIn DII, I\u2019m the guy who does a little bit of everything.\u201d

A big share of Hastings\u2019 duties are performed behind-the-scenes. He is responsible for accumulating statistics and writing stories for men\u2019s soccer, men\u2019s cross country, wrestling and baseball.

But when it comes to Game Day in GMC, Prickett calls on several student workers to help out.

For the Central Region championships, Hastings could be seen working all around the coliseum, from running the video board to making sure the teams had everything they need, and everything in between.

\u201cI want to make sure everything goes right,\u201d he said, \u201cso I become vested in it.\u201d

Although FHSU lost the regional title game, the Tiger women will no doubt remember the tournament experience for a long time. So, too, will fellow FHSU students who had the opportunity to be a part of the event.

\u201cEvents like this are a great opportunity for kids to see what it takes to put on a high-level tournament weekend,\u201d said Brian Flax, an employee in the Athletics Department who is in charge of concessions. \u201cIt takes a lot of pieces falling into place, and the students are a big part of that. Besides getting to see their fellow athletes do well, they get the chance to be involved, too.\u201d

After five years of working as a student under Prickett as an undergrad and graduate student, Hastings is set to graduate in May and hopes to continuing working in sports information at the DII level. He said he is glad he attended FHSU because it gave him a completely different outlook of working at a DII school than what he had growing up.

\u201cBeing from the Topeka area, I\u2019m used to the big city, and a lot of people don\u2019t know much about Washburn,\u201d he said of Washburn University, a DII school and a fellow MIAA member with FHSU.

\u201cIn Hays, everybody is fully vested in this university. Farmers from around the whole area and people around town, everyone knows Fort Hays State. That\u2019s one thing I really love about Hays. The community is so involved in the university and its athletic teams.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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