Averett athletics communications earns Stabley writing honors

DANVILLE, Va. — Averett University's Department of Athletics Communications had two stories earn first place and one finish as runner-up in the district in their respective College Division categories in the 2025-26 Fred Stabley Sr. Writing Contest through the College Sports Communicators, the organization announced Tuesday.

Drew Wilson, director of university marketing and communications, won first place for the third year in a row for "Historical Feature" in the District 3 College Division category with his feature "A full-circle moment as coaches recall post-pandemic spring season five years later." He also took home first place for "Athlete Profile" with his feature story on men's golf's Killian O'Reilly titled "O'Reilly's positive mindset eases pressure entering 2025 NCAA Men's Golf National Championships."

District winners advance to the national ballot, with national winners in each of the categories to be announced later this summer.

Wilson also earned district runner-up for "Event Coverage" with his recap, "Wrestling's Barrett places third, earns All-America honors at NCAA Division III National Championships."

Averett's district includes non-Division I schools in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. CSC members in all eight districts submitted nearly 500 articles in seven categories. All stories had to be published within the 2025 calendar year.

It's the fifth consecutive year Wilson has received recognition in the Stabley Writing Contest. After earning district runner-up for "Historical Feature" in 2022 and district runner-up in 2023 for "Social Justice/Diversity & Inclusion," Wilson had five stories earn recognition in 2024 — two first place stories and three runner-up selections in the district. His story on the 2003 Averett men's golf team's national title won first place nationally in the "Historical Feature" category and was the runner-up for "National Story of the Year" in the College Division of the 2023-24 Stabley Writing Contest. Last year, he earned first place in the district in the historical feature and general feature/blog categories, as well as runner-up for athlete profile. The historical feature on Averett Hall of Famer Chris Stanley '98 went on to win first place nationally for historical feature in the College Division for 2024-25.