MIAC'S MIKE AUGUSTIN AWARD

MINNEAPOLIS -- Augsburg University Sports Information Director Don Stoner has been named as the 19th recipient of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference's Mike Augustin Award, which recognizes outstanding contributions to MIAC athletic programs and their student-athletes by members of the media or athletic communicators.
 
Stoner is entering his 25th school year as sports information director (SID) at Augsburg, a position that handles the communications, media relations, statistics, audio/visual, website and social media efforts for Augsburg's 22 varsity intercollegiate sports. Stoner served as chair of the MIAC's sports information directors committee from 2001-03.
 
"Don Stoner is the absolute workhorse of our department. He bleeds Augsburg maroon," said Augsburg Athletic Director Jeff Swenson '79. "He is tireless and passionate about delivering first-class products through the sports information office that he oversees. His driving force is providing student-athletes the greatest possible experience while here at Augsburg. I can think of no one more deserving of this honor than Don Stoner."
 
Stoner is the seventh MIAC SID to receive the Mike Augustin Award since it was first awarded in 1999, joining Jerry Pyle (Concordia-Moorhead, 2002-03), Dave Wright (Hamline, 2005-06), Donny Nadeau (Saint Mary's, 2010-11), Tim Kennedy (Gustavus, 2011-12), Dan McKane (MIAC, 2014-15) and Gene McGivern (St. Thomas, 2020-21). Stoner is the third person with an association with Augsburg to receive the honor, joining McGivern, who was Augsburg's SID from 1988 to 1994, and longtime broadcaster Tom Witschen, who received the honor in 2013-14.
 
"Don has been a driving force for the MIAC Sports Information Directors for many years," Concordia-Moorhead SID Jim Cella said. "He is always pushing the group to get better on all the different aspects of the job and has done a tremendous job helping the new SIDs become involved with CoSIDA. On a personal level, Don has made me a better SID by trying to keep up with the incredible job he does for all the Augsburg athletic teams. Don is a very deserving recipient of the Mike Augustin Award and carries on the tradition of honorees that have bettered the conference through their work in the media."
 
The Mike Augustin Award is named for Augustin, a longtime sportswriter at the St. Paul Pioneer Press, who was an articulate friend, follower, and advocate of the MIAC. The conference established the award in his honor following Augustin's death from a sudden illness in December 1997. The award is voted on by the conference's SIDs during their summer meeting in August.
 
"To join this fraternity of friends and colleagues who have received this award is truly an honor. I am humbled by the vote of my peers in the MIAC. I love being a part of the MIAC and NCAA Division III athletics," Stoner said. "This award is not mine. It should really be for the student-athletes, teams, coaches and athletic staff at Augsburg. It has been an honor and privilege for me to share their stories for the last quarter-century."
 
A native of Somerset, Wis., and a 1991 graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Stoner worked as a reporter for small newspapers in Wisconsin and Minnesota before joining the athletic communications profession at Augsburg in the fall of 1997. Stoner also served as the MIAC's SID during the 1997-98 school year. Auggie teams have won 26 MIAC regular-season or playoff championships during his tenure, and have qualified for NCAA national tournament competition 21 times. In addition, Augsburg's men's wrestling team has won 18 NCAA Division III regional tournaments and has won nine of its 13 national championships while he has served as SID.
 
"You are not going to find a more dedicated, hard-working individual than Don," Saint Mary's SID Donny Nadeau said. "He is the epitome of what a sports information director should be. Don's ability to tell the Augsburg story, as well as his promotion of both the Auggies and the MIAC is truly the gold standard. There is no one around more deserving of this prestigious honor than Don Stoner."
 
An active member of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), Stoner served as a member of the organization's Academic All-America Committee for 19 years and has served for the past three years on the Special Awards Committee. Augsburg student-athletes have been honored with 44 CoSIDA Academic All-America awards since the fall of 1997.
 
Stoner has also been active as a freelance worker for numerous sports organizations during his Augsburg years. He has been a part of the game-night statistics and scorer's table crew for the NBA's Minnesota Timberwolves since 1999 and WNBA's Minnesota Lynx since 2000, currently serving as a scoreboard operator for both teams. He has worked at many state tournaments for the Minnesota State High School League since 2011, including serving as chief statistician for the Minnesota state softball tournament for 10 years. He also worked with the Minnesota Swarm indoor lacrosse team for three years as a statistician.
 
He has also been a volunteer for 25 NCAA Division I national or regional championship events in eight different sports hosted by the University of Minnesota over the years, including two men's basketball Final Fours (2001, 2019), three men's hockey Frozen Fours (2002, 2011, 2018), three women's hockey Frozen Fours (1998 AWCHA, 2001, 2013), the 1999 men's golf national championships and the 2018 women's volleyball national championships. He also assisted his alma mater, Wisconsin-Oshkosh, on the media relations staff for eight NCAA Division III baseball national championships, and has worked at the 2011 Division III men's hockey national championships and Division III outdoor track and field national championships in 1998 and 2007.
 
"I have been very fortunate to work in the athletic community for so many years," Stoner said. "I've been able to travel across the country and around the world for my work, and have been a part of many, many special moments with my teams and others. Behind every single one of these moments are great people, and it's those people that I am privileged to serve."

Stoner will be celebrated by his colleagues in a presentation ceremony later this year.