NEWBERRY — Director of Athletic Communications Randall Stewart has announced the hiring of Janay Boone, Asha Evans, and Morganne Lander as Athletic Communications Assistants to complete the department’s staff for the 2017-18 academic year.
“(Director of Athletics) Ralph (Patterson) told me to get the three best candidates available,” Stewart said, “and I feel confident that’s exactly what we’ve done. We had an extremely strong pool of 34 applicants for these positions. I can’t to see what we’ll be able to accomplish this year.”
Janay Boone is a 2017 graduate of North Carolina A&T. Boone came to Newberry immediately after finishing her degree in Journalism and Mass Communications. As part of her final internship requirements, she worked a semester-long internship in the Sports Information Department at Guilford College. She worked extensively with the men’s and women’s lacrosse programs and assisted with operations for both basketball teams.
While at North Carolina A&T, the Kinston, N.C. native served as Sports Editor of the A&T Register, the university’s student newspaper, for one academic year before becoming its Managing Editor for two. She also spent one and a half years as an Aggie Student Ambassador.
Boone will be the primary media contact for men’s and women’s soccer, wrestling, and Newberry’s first-year men’s lacrosse program. She will also coordinate coverage for the tennis programs in the fall and Newberry’s new track and field programs in the spring.
Asha Evans graduated with a B.S. in Business Administration, Sports Management and a B.S. in Communication-Broadcasting from Western Carolina in December 2016. She spent the Spring 2017 semester as a Media Relations Assistant with the Catamounts, working in various operations and statistical roles in basketball, softball, baseball, and soccer.
Evans spent a summer as a Media Relations Intern with the Greenville Drive, Single-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. While in Greenville, the Newton, N.C., native authored multiple recaps for the team’s website and featured stories for Drive Magazine, managed social media accounts, and worked on the team’s grassroots marketing efforts. She also worked as a runner at the 2017 Southern Conference Basketball Tournament in Asheville, N.C.
Her sport responsibilities include field hockey, women’s basketball, and softball. She will also coordinate men’s and women’s cross country coverage in the fall and men’s and women’s golf coverage in the spring while serving as the secondary media contact for football.
A native of Jacksonville, Fla., Morganne Lander spent the 2016-17 academic year as a student volunteer in the Athletics Communication Department at the University of North Florida. She worked extensively with volleyball, basketball, and tennis statistics and game operations while with the Ospreys, learning under Amanda Radtke.
She also spent two years as a Resident Assistant and a semester as an Events Intern with UNF Campus Life.
Lander will be Newberry’s primary contact for volleyball, men’s basketball, and women’s lacrosse. She will work with the men’s and women’s golf programs in the fall and the men’s and women’s tennis teams in the spring.