Creative students and well-known teachers are working side by side this year for the livestream broadcasts of Westminster sports games, specifically basketball, in order to give listeners an interesting and entertaining experience.

This year’s athletic events have been completely different from past years. Because of the limitations on the amount of spectators allowed at the actual event, many schools have been forced to live stream their games in order to allow all people to have the opportunity to watch the games. Some schools simply post the recording after the game, but others go the extra mile to have play-by-play audio announcers. While watching games from home is definitely not as interactive as being in the stands, many of the new announcers around the St. Louis area have stepped up to the challenge and made live streams equally as interesting as the real thing.

Some schools allow passionate students to take charge and voice the play-by-play of many of the games, while other schools keep administrators and teachers in charge in an effort to keep their live streams more professional. There are certainly various ways to go about this “issue,” but rest assured that Westminster is doing the best they can with the task at hand.

Westminster’s broadcasts are often unique and quite different from most other schools in the St. Louis area. Our commentators change with fluidity almost every game, making spectators eager to see who is going to be calling the current game. Sometimes, the announcers are two teachers or administrators, while other times they consist of two students; often, there is even a combination of students and administrators, which definitely makes for an interesting call.

While all of the announcers are appreciated and loved by many people, there exists some favorites amongst the Westminster community. For example, Todd Zell, a math teacher at Westminster who is known for his “dad joke of the day.” While he doesn’t exactly incorporate many “dad jokes” into his broadcasts, his dry style and humor is enjoyable to listen to when he calls the games.

“When Coach Snyder and I work together it’s pretty easy because we know each other pretty well. He understands my goofy sense of humor and plays along and even feeds me some lines,” said Zell.

Mr. Zell is a great announcer who not only does a great job announcing the game, but he also offers detailed insight about the team and individual players.

Another well-respected announcer is only a sophomore but does an exceptional job behind the mic. Tyler Collison, sophomore, is often very involved in the play-by-play and does a superb job of keeping up with the fast paced games before him.

“I have always loved to talk, and I would consider myself pretty witty and quick on my feet, so announcing seemed like it would be a natural fit for me…I hope everyone listening and watching has enjoyed the game even more with our announcing, and I hope they find it adds an exciting extra element to the game,” said Collison.

Without the help of student and staff member announcers, the Westminster basketball games would be quiet and surely not as interesting to watch. Not only is it entertaining to watch and listen to the announcers, but it is also encouraging to see how well students and administrators can work together to accomplish the task at hand. While this year’s athletic season has offered its challenges, it has also allowed for some new opportunities. Hopefully, next year, fans will be able to pack the gyms, but even as we move out of this difficult season of life, we hope to see the continuation of our live streams in the future along with the amazing announcers that go along with it.