McLean County Times

The College Sports Communicators (CSC) Creative & Digital Design Contest recently announced its winners for the 2024-25 edition. The results were unveiled at a Special Events Luncheon held on the final day of #CSCUnite25 at the Orlando World Center Marriott Resort. Among those recognized were Meredith Mahoney and Ashtin Elder from Illinois Wesleyan University’s athletic communications department.

Patrick Murphy, committee chair from the Colorado School of Mines, stated, "The Creative & Digital Design contest continues to showcase the immeasurable talent of the CSC membership in the creative space as we recognize the best in our industry through a wide variety of contest categories as judged by their peers." He congratulated all winners on behalf of himself and other key members involved in organizing the contest.

This year’s contest saw a significant increase in participation, marking a 33.5% rise from last year with 2,160 total entries. These included 930 submissions from the University Division and 1,230 from the College Division. Nine categories experienced growth in participation, particularly within Portfolio Contests which saw an increase to 173 entries alongside two additional contests introduced this year. Overall participation has surged by over 125% compared to previous years.

Meredith Mahoney received accolades for her long-form video recap of Illinois Wesleyan's men's volleyball victory over Dominican University. Her work was ranked fourth among Division III nominations. Ashtin Elder earned recognition for his photography in the Photo of the Year category, with his image capturing postgame celebrations ranking sixth overall and first among Division III entries.

Finalists for Designer, Photographer, and Videographer of the Year were also honored during Wednesday's luncheon. Notably present were Lynchburg's Micah Adams and Wayne State's Zack Belsky who won Videographer and Designer of the Year respectively within the College Division.

Over 250 institutions participated this year with more than 650 individuals named across various entries. In total, 435 places were recognized with 307 entries receiving "Best Of" honors within each level of competition in the College Division. The University Division comprised entirely of Division I institutions featured 930 entries across its contests.

The awards highlighted achievements across different educational levels including contributions from Canadian institutions, two-year colleges, and high schools among others. In all, contributions came from 123 institutions along with numerous individual collaborators working within communication and creative departments.