Skyline Desk Chief Dawson Beard Announces for National Softball Tournament
By Brooke Manuel, Skyline Editor
ALPINE – Dawson Beard, a Sul Ross State University senior and Skyline Desk Chief, was hired as the Public Address Announcer for the 2024 NCAA Division III Softball National Championship in Marshall, Texas.
A chance meeting with the head coach of East Texas Baptist University’s softball team led to the largest public address announcing gig of Beard’s blossoming career.
Doubling as both an SRSU baseball player and SRSU’s Public Address Announcer, Beard wasn’t able to announce many of the Sul Ross softball team’s games this season as the baseball and softball season coincide with one another. Baseball season ended just one week before softball season, so Beard’s schedule permitted him to announce the final Lobo Softball series vs. ETBU on May 3-4.
At the end of the first day of games, the head coach of ETBU’s softball team told Beard that ETBU was hosting the 2024 NCAA Division III National Softball Championship and asked him if he would be interested in announcing for the tournament.
After securing the position, Beard flew from Las Vegas, Nevada, his hometown, to Marshall, Texas, at the end of May to work the tournament, which consisted of 16 games.
While working the tournament, Beard tested his public address announcing abilities with a 16-hour day of announcing. Due to the first day of the tournament being rained out, the schedule was rearranged, and the second day consisted of six games.
“I found out that day that my limit is five [games],” Beard said.
Despite the crazy schedule, Beard spoke highly of the experience.
“Even though I knew I was in for a long day, I was still excited for it, and I didn’t care,” Beard said.
He also spoke of how well ETBU treated him while he was there and said that it was the most amazing experience he has had as a public address announcer thus far.
Beard’s journey as a public address announcer began in 2021 at North Central Texas College in Gainesville, Texas, when he volunteered to announce a baseball game.
After leaving NCTC, Beard transferred to Sul Ross where he continued working as a public address announcer and as a pitcher on the baseball team. He eventually ventured outside of the SRSU community and began announcing for the Alpine Cowboys, an independent professional baseball team in the Pecos League. This summer is his second season announcing for the Cowboys. Since then, Beard has been referred to as both the “Voice of the Big Bend” and the “Voice of the Lobos.”
In addition to his accomplishments as a baseball player and announcer, Beard made the Dean’s List every semester, received the Outstanding Communications Student of 2024 award, and was awarded with the American Southwest Conference Scholar-Athlete Medal of Honor this year.