CORVALLIS, Ore. – Corban University’s Clayton Messerle was named the 2023-24 Cascade Collegiate Conference Mike Booth College Sport Communicator (CSC) of the Year, announced by the conference office.
The College Sport Communicators of the CCC vote on the annual award, recognizing outstanding work with the CCC and NAIA championship events, promotion, publicity, and marketing efforts. It was named after the late conference/district SID Mike Booth.
Other nominees for the award were Lewis-Clark State College’s Alishia Alexander and Oregon Tech’s Mike Safford.
“Congratulations to Clayton on being selected by his peers as the CCC CSC of the Year. He is an incredible individual to work with, always exceeding expectations for not only his institution but the conference as a whole,” stated Courtney Blumer, CCC Director of Communications. “His outstanding abilities deserve to be recognized and I am looking forward to see his future success.”
Upon receiving the award Messerle stated, “I'm fortunate to have joined this conference and work alongside some of the best communications professionals the NAIA and collegiate sports field have to offer. I was blessed to become a Warrior after the hard work and dedication that many of Corban's previous communication professionals provided.”
In just his second year as a part of the Corban athletic department, Clayton has already been promoted and currently serves as the Assistant Athletic Director, Director of Athletic Communications. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology from Oregon State University, as well as a Minor in Business Administration. During his time there, Clayton held multiple student internships and responsibilities within the Oregon State Athletics Department, ranging from marketing, social media, graphic design, and team management.
“Clayton consistently goes above and beyond for all our teams. His accuracy, responsibility, attention to detail and servant leadership are extraordinary. Our elite media and communication are a direct reflection on his hard work,” said Corban Athletic Director, Bill Pilgeram.
This past year, Messerle was named to CSC’s 30-Under-30 class representing one of five NAIA SIDs to be honored by the national organization. He was also a featured member in the NAIA-SIDA Spotlight Series this past October, has served on the NAIA-SIDA Continuing Education Committee as a Co-Chair representative since 2022, and was a member of the CSC Planning Committee for the upcoming 2024 convention.
Aside from the few part-time hours provided in the spring season to help concurrently host baseball/softball doubleheaders, Clayton covers all 18 Corban varsity sports on a year-round basis. He serves as the head statistician for all sports, as well as the PA announcer for most. Additionally, he handles all non-conference game contracts, assists in the athletic department budget oversight, holds the responsibilities of department manager for all student employment, and most recently took on external partnership/marketing relations for Corban Athletics.
Social media growth and innovation also continue to be the focal point of the Corban athletic communications department and since Clayton took over, engagement across all platforms has drastically increased.
“The encouragement of my wife Taylor will always be the central pillar in my ability to provide our department members with the support they deserve as collegiate student-athletes and coaching professionals, along with the supportive advice provided by my mentor Alisha,” Messerle concluded.
As the conference winner, Clayton will be moved forward to the NAIA National SID of the Year ballot.