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Morgan E. Elzey

Salisbury University

Dr. David P. Burns

COMM 495-701: Internship in Communications

Placement: Delmarva Sports Network

Spring 2023
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While searching for colleges and attempting to choose a career path, I always debated on

whether to major in early childhood education or something within the communications field,

especially as a concert junkie with a passion for nurturing the next generation of leaders. I

entered college in Lancaster, Pennsylvania attending Lancaster Bible College, ultimately double

majoring in Early Childhood Education and Biblical Studies. Long story short, I only attended

that college for three semesters before some personal matters occurred, which required me to

return to Maryland. I then transferred back home to Salisbury University. It’s bizarre that I

transferred when I did, because my first semester at Salisbury was when the COVID-19

pandemic struck, shutting down campus and the world for the foreseeable future. I also declared

a new major after transferring. I believe I started out in the media production track, but shortly

after beginning my academic career at Salisbury, I switched to the Public Relations and Strategic

Communications track, and I didn’t look back. Once I declared the track and added my minor in

Marketing, my career aspirations included breaking into the music industry and becoming a tour

manager, artist manager or something within the music business and concert industry. However,

all those plans changed during the Fall 2021 semester.

During that semester, my career aspirations took a complete turn around. I was placed at

the Delmarva Shorebirds for my practicum internship as a marketing assistant. The Shorebirds

are the Single-A Affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. Each major league has a system of minor

league affiliates called the “farm system.” Delmarva is the first stop in the system, with three

additional teams before a baseball player makes their major league debut for the Baltimore

Orioles. The additional three teams are: Aberdeen Ironbirds (High-A), Bowie Baysox

(Double-A), and the Norfolk Tides (Triple-A). After stopping at Norfolk, players can be selected

to enter the Orioles roster. Growing up, I’d been to a few Shorebirds games, but never saw
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myself entering sports as an internship or as a career choice. After that semester, that was far

from the truth. I became fully and completely invested in the sports world, exclusively the

Orioles farm system. There, I learned so much about marketing in the sports industry, and how to

reach my target audiences. However, I feel as if this practicum placement really set the stones in

front of me to enter my current internship at the Delmarva Sports Network for the Spring 2023

semester. 

The Delmarva Sports Network (DSN) recently launched in early 2022 under the Draper

Media umbrella of channels in the local Salisbury area. Not only is it under Draper Media, it is

also in the same building as WBOC-TV 16, located on Route 13 in Salisbury. DSN is the only

local twenty-four (24) hour sports channel, highlighting local high school and collegiate sports,

and local minor league teams, such as the Delmarva Shorebirds and Delaware Thunder. From

high school basketball games to ice hockey in Harrington, Delaware, and everything in between,

they cover it all. With a channel this small, yet so large, there must be a coverage or broadcasting

area. The furthest south we go is roughly Nandua on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, but as far

north as Kent Island or Stevensville, Maryland, and in Delaware, as far north as the Camden

area. DSN has a team of about twelve individuals, including two producers, two directors, three

photographers/videographers, four on-air talents, and one social media and promotions manager.

Most of these employees are fresh out of college with some of the most hands-on experience.

At DSN, they have graduates from Temple University, High Point University, Syracuse

University, and University of Florida. With such a small staff, they are still able to get things

done, which I give them major props for. Working tirelessly in front of screens for more than ten

hours a day is strenuous on the eyes and the mind, and most certainly is not a job for the weak.

The early workings of this new sports channel were trial and error. Starting a new channel from
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scratch and determining your target market is hard. But, with all of the inner workings working

out early, DSN has seen blossoming success. Their first huge coverage was the Delmar Little

League softball team going to the Little League Softball World Series in Greenville, North

Carolina. However, every grand ride has to come to an end. Delmar fell short in the final game,

losing to Texas. With the footage that DSN was able to obtain from the Delmar run to the Little

League Softball World Series, they were able to curate a one-hour documentary about the girls’

road to the biggest stage for Little League softball teams, coaches and families around the world.

At this placement, I have learned so many things' hands on that I know I would not have

learned anywhere else. From day one, the team was so welcoming, and they were ready to equip

me with the tools I need to succeed in the sports media world. I have also traveled to new schools

and places that I have not been to before to assist in setting up and breaking down equipment,

learning what is in the production truck and more. Not only have I helped in setting up and

breaking down, but the production truck has been one of my favorite aspects.

The production truck is used during either live games or tape-delayed games. The

production truck is worth probably a half million dollars, with the satellite dish, all the

equipment inside, and the vehicle itself. Live games are pretty self-explanatory; we go into the

field and produce the game live from the truck. Our director will contact someone back at the

station to run breaks, so that we are on time with commercials and coming back live on the air.

From instant replays, to score and graphics, we do it all in the truck. However, if we do a

tape-delay, there isn’t an urgent rush to do the game. We can take our time but must finish the

game. If the tape delay is at 8pm, we would have to get back to the station to then cut the show

up so it can go on the air by the specific time. With all games, tape-delayed or live, we will have
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a Facebook live stream going at the studio, so those athletes who may have family outside of our

broadcasting area may watch live from other states.

Not only was the production truck a highlight, but also touring the entire station on day

one. I’ve passed WBOC on Route 13 more times than I can count. However, I never saw myself

interning at a television station, until I became invested in the sports realm. From day one,

everyone was so welcoming, and the other intern and I were able to tour the entire station, hosted

by the station general manager, Bill Vernon. Mr. Vernon gave us a full tour, including a bunch of

fun facts about the station. The fun fact that stuck out to me the most was the amount of wiring

under the station flooring. It is miles of wiring and ethernet – it was about ten (10) miles of

wiring, ethernet and other fiber optic cables, but I cannot remember the exact number. The final

highlight that I was able to experience while interning at the Delmarva Sports Network was the

ability to travel new places, and even cross my place of employment with my internship. I love

to travel and I also love sports, so this was an added bonus to the placement. The furthest we

traveled on the days I was there was up to Appoquinimink High School in Middletown,

Delaware, when they were facing Laurel High School out of Laurel, Delaware.

While doing a lot of behind the scenes work at Delmarva Sports Network, I have learned

a lot about communication and teamwork. With the chaos of sports, communication and

teamwork are key, especially in production and broadcasting. The most important concept that I

have learned while interning with DSN is that being efficient and productive with the time you

do have will go a long way. As someone who has struggled with time management in the past,

being at DSN and working on restrictive deadlines has assisted me in working on my skills that

are lacking. At Delmarva Sports Network, each team member has their own area to work in,

whether it be a desk or in a production room. However, each of them also has several tasks for
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the day. Those tasks can range from the shows, to hits for the news, or even working on their

content for the shows. Content for the shows can range from voiceover tape (VOT) and writing

scripts on ENPS, which is a software made by the Associated Press (AP) for journalists. It can

also look like creating stingers, or introduction graphics for live shows. Lastly, it could also look

like creating highlight packages for hits or the shows (The Final Score) which airs live every

weeknight evening at 10:30pm.

There have been some on-air talents, directors, and producers that I have worked with

more than the others. The on-air talents that I have worked with the most are Cory Nidoh, Tim

Nolan, and Tyrone Sharper. Each of them have years of broadcasting experience prior to joining

the DSN team. Nidoh graduated from East Stroudsburg University in 2015 with a Bachelor of

Arts degree in Communication and Media Studies. Nolan graduated in 2022 from Syracuse

University with his B.S. in Broadcast and Digital Journalism, and Sharper graduated from

Temple University in 2019 with a degree in Media Studies and Production. Nidoh has prior

broadcasting knowledge with ESPN Plus (ESPN+), the Wilmington Blue Rocks (High-A

Affiliate of the Washington Nationals), and Daytona Tortugas Professional Baseball (Single-A

Affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds). Nolan comes to DSN with background broadcasting on the

ACC Network, ESPN+, and the Hartford Yard Goats (Double-A Affiliate of the Colorado

Rockies). Lastly, Sharper has prior practice with his university news station and the Temple

student radio station.

As for the directors, I have worked with each of them fairly evenly. Noah Carter is a

Salisbury University alum from Dover, Delaware. He graduated during the spring 2022 semester

with his degree in media production. However, the second director, Brian Matheis, has his degree

in Media Studies and Production from Temple University. Both are phenomenal directors and I
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have learned a lot from each of them. Noah was the first to teach me about the scoring system we

use for the Delaware Thunder hockey games, and Brian allowed me to utilize the BlackMagic

Switchboard, which is the panel that allows us to rotate camera angles during all broadcasts,

either live or tape-delayed. DSN also has a larger switchboard in the production room for the set

back at the station, that does alot more than the smaller one in the truck.

In terms of the producers, I’ve definitely worked with one more than the other. Maurice

“Moe” Ware is the primary producer at the Delmarva Sports Network. While I haven’t done a lot

of the producing side of things, I’ve still learned a lot from him in reference to the timing of

graphics during a broadcast, since we’re able to do all of them from the production truck.

Finally, as for photographers, I have the most experience learning from Ben Membrino

and Jack Kyritsis. Membrino is a graduate of High Point University in North Carolina, obtaining

his undergraduate degree in Sports Communication. Kyritsis is a graduate of University of

Delaware, and he is a Delaware native. Having preceding exposure to camera work at previous

jobs, this was an aspect I was interested in at DSN. I learned from them how to set up the

cameras once we arrive at our school or game from Ben and Jack. Photographers not only go

with the team for live games, but they are also sent out to obtain highlights from games we aren’t

able to have live or tape-delayed. The most experience I received in this aspect was during the

Stellar Fights 55 in Harrington, Delaware, where I was able to hold the camera while the

photographer entered the ring for post-match interviews with the athletes.

Every internship, career and workplace has its ebbs and flows. As for me at Delmarva

Sports Network, my greatest flow was networking with industry professionals. I believe this was

my greatest accomplishment due to the sports world being all about who you know and how you

know each other. Those who I have spoken with in meetings and outside of classes have asked
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me this question: 'how do you know so many people in the industry?’ My answer to this question

remains consistent: networking and making connections with those even outside of the

department you wish to work in. For example, I wish to work in visual content creation

(photography) for a baseball team, but I am still curating connections with those who work in

ticketing, merchandise and even those in the grounds crew realm of sports. However, I believe

my greatest ebb was the concept of time management. I’ve not always been the best at managing

my time, especially this semester. With being a student, an intern and working part time, it was

very hard. There have been times that I have put my job and extracurriculars first before school,

and I know that should not have happened. For example, I’d occupy my time doing other things

besides school or focusing on my homework. However, I am trying my hardest to get better at

managing my time.

During my time at Salisbury University, I have taken some courses that I have taken that

I believe prepared me for this internship with Delmarva Sports Network. They include the

following: Intro to Mass Media (COMM 102), Writing for Media (CMAT 131), Business and

Professional Communication (COMM 260), Writing for the Professions (COMM 344), and Mass

Communications Law (COMM 438). While not all of these classes are related to media

production or sports journalism, I still believe I’m better prepared for my career in the

communications field, especially as I wish to be in sports media and visual content creation. Out

of these select classes, there are three that I genuinely believe have equipped me beyond the rest.

All the classes helped me in their own ways, but the three classes I believe prepared me the most

are Writing for Media, Business and Professional Communication, and Mass Communication

Law. I chose these three from the rest because of the content of the courses. Writing for Media is

evident - this course aided me to become a better writer for various types of media, from
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screenwriting to television and radio. The second course, Business and Professional

Communication, I took during the COVID-19 pandemic while the University only provided

online courses. The course supplied me with the tools to effectively communicate amongst

colleagues, acquaintances, and potential employers. It also helped me break down my walls and

fear of speaking in front of others. The final course that I believe helped me is Mass

Communication Law. I took this during the Spring 2022 semester, and I truly loved the class and

professor. The professor taught us all about the first amendment and how it applies to mass

communications, specifically for newspapers, radio, television and other media outlets. These

tools from the respective courses effectively assisted me in my time at other opportunities

throughout my time at Salisbury University, especially at Delmarva Sports Network and now

working on my career in the sports industry.

To conclude, the hands-on experience of an internship is something that I will always

recommend to those who are wondering about an internship or seminar during their senior year

of college. As previously stated, I never saw myself going into sports until the fall 2021

semester. However, between my practicum placement at the Delmarva Shorebirds and my most

recent internship with the Delmarva Sports Network, I feel better prepared going into the sports

industry than I had ever imagined. I appreciate all that the Delmarva Sports Network team taught

me through the semester, from the logistical side to the production side, and even the social

media and promotions side. Getting my hands dirty on a different side of the industry was a very

rewarding experience. With everyone’s individual experience in their respective fields, I have

learned a lot through personal experience and through those who work for Delmarva Sports

Network. They have truly been a great team to work with, and I look forward to seeing their

future endeavors unfold.