Westminster Wins NATAS 2019 Sports-Live Event Award

ATLANTA, GA — WCAT, the student-run webTV station at Westminster, an independent Christian day school, has won a 2019 National Student Production Award, presented by The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS), according to a news release.

This is the staff’s second time winning the national award. Their program previously won the Sports–Live Event award in 2017.

This year Westminster’s students were selected from a pool of 1,500 applicants to advance to the national competition. Their entry was a part of 200 nominees, where they were then judged by industry professionals and university professors before being selected as the national winner.

WCAT’s coverage of the Westminster varsity football team’s second-round state playoff game against Greater Atlanta Christian School last November is what got them the award in the Sports-Live Event category.

Senior Jack Hunter serves as the staff’s senior direction and is also a play-by-play announcer for football games.

“It’s really rewarding to see our crew’s hard work pay off,” he said in the release. “It’s gratifying to be recognized for the effort we put in setting up broadcasts, researching facts, interviewing coaches, and making sure we have great on-air content.”

The students also won the award on the regional level at this year’s High School Student Production Awards, hosted by the Southeast Chapter of NATAS. In total, WCAT has won 11 regional awards since 2014. This is the second time WCAT claimed the national title.

“WCAT is thrilled to accept the National Student Production Award for Live Sports broadcast,” said Daniel Searl, WCAT’s faculty advisor. “The award is a statement to the tireless work our student crew dedicates to planning and executing each event.”

Searl said that the winning broadcast included six cameras, a full pregame show with hosts and sports updates and in-game sideline interviews. There was also a live look into a basketball game at Westminster, that included coach conversations at halftime and postgame. Graphics and statistics supported the show, along with replays of key game plays.

“We’re grateful for the support the station has received from Westminster, the NFHS Network, and from the Southeast Chapter of NATAS,” Searl said.

Students and Upper School teacher, Daniel Searl, were all recognized. Names include:

Andrew Abernathy '21, Collier Ballard '19, Franklin Brannen '20, James Carr '21, Carlos Carranza '19, Fifo Chlopek '24, Turner Cravens '20, Patrick Diaz '20, Christianna Doele '20, William Foshee '19, David Goetze '20, Jack Hunter '20, Mason McGarrity '20, Reilly O'Neill '22, Mary Louise Rogers '20, Coleman Thompson '20, William Turton '19, and Buckley Wiley '25.