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Explore/D9 Bolster Sports Department with Addition of Kilroy and Sullenberger

CLARION, Pa. (EYT) – EYT Media Group and D9SPorts.com have announced that Mike Kilroy, former longtime sportswriter for the Butler Eagle newspaper, and Jared Sullenberger, former assistant sports information director at Clarion University, have joined the staff.

(PHOTO ABOVE: Pictured Left: Mike Kilroy joins Explore from the Butler Eagle. Pictured Right: Jared Sullenberger joins EYT from Clarion University where he served as the Assistant Sports Information Director.)

Kilroy, who has nearly three decades of journalism experience, comes to EYT Media as a sports editor, providing coverage that will be available on the group’s various sites, including ExploreClarion.com and d9sports.com.

“I literally could not wait to get started,” Kilroy said. “This is a wonderful opportunity to highlight the achievements of local athletes in the region for an organization that is on the cutting edge in this new age of media.”

Mike Kilroy joins the EYT staff with more than 30 years of experience and multiple National Accolades to back it up.

Mike Kilroy joins the EYT staff with more than 30 years of experience and multiple National Accolades to back it up.

Kilroy got his start as a part-time sports writer at the Warren Tribune-Chronicle in Warren, Ohio. There, he wrote features on high school athletes and covered prep events. He also covered the Cleveland Indians during their 1995 run to the World Series for the paper.

After Warren, Kilroy spent five years at the Steubenville Herald-Star in Ohio and its sister paper, The Weirton Daily Times, in West Virginia. In the Ohio Valley, high school football is king and Kilroy was able to hone his craft under that pressure.

Kilroy left Steubenville for Butler and spent 21 years at the Eagle, where he covered high school and community sports. He also dabbled in everything a newsroom has to offer, helping out on the news and copy desks in a pinch.

He is a multiple Keystone, Golden Quill, and Associated Press Sports Editors award winner.

Kilroy lives in Butler with his wife, Dahn, and young daughter, Emma Caroline.

“There’s one thing that is true anywhere: people love sports, and they love reading about what athletes are doing in their communities,” Kilroy said. “It’s an honor to be able to share those stories.”

Sullenberger, who earned his bachelor’s in digital media communications and master’s degree in mass media journalism from Clarion University, joins the EYT Media team looking to build on the success and accomplishments of ExploreClarion and d9sports.com.

“There are a lot of great teams, schools, and student-athletes in the district,” Sullenberger said. “I’m excited for the chance to cover them more closely.”

Before coming aboard at EYT, Sullenberger served as the assistant sports information director at Clarion University.

After spending five seasons in the Athletics Department at Clarion University, Sullenberger brings the expertise of digital media and sports broadcasting to the EYT team.

After spending five seasons in the Athletics Department at Clarion University, Sullenberger brings the expertise of digital media and sports broadcasting to the EYT team.

In his role at Clarion, Sullenberger provided primary coverage for men’s basketball, men’s and women’s golf, women’s soccer, men’s and women’s swimming and diving and baseball. He also assisted in the daily operation of the Sports Information office.

Before working in the athletic department at Clarion, Sullenberger served as the graduate assistant and Sports Director in the communication program’s pre-professional organization, Eagle Media Productions.

A staple in Clarion’s press boxes, Sullenberger was the main play-by-play broadcaster and the voice of Golden Eagle athletics as a student assistant in the Sports Information Department.

Sullenberger also served as a liaison for the men’s and women’s soccer teams at the NCAA Division II Fall Festival National Championships in 2018, where he facilitated communication between the team and event organizers, media, and fans.

Prior to his position in the communication department, Sullenberger completed an internship with the Washington Wildthings, a professional baseball organization in the independent Frontier League, where he serves as a member of the media coordination team.

Currently, Sullenberger is also in his first year as the head football coach of the Central Clarion junior high team.

Sullenberger, a native of Charleroi, Pa., now resides in Clarion with his wife and son.

“Coming from a small town just south of Pittsburgh, sports were always the center of the community,” Sullenberger said. “I’ve learned very quickly that Clarion and the surrounding areas are no different, and it feels like home.”

Kilroy and Sullenberger join a sports department that already features veteran broadcasters Bob Dunkle, Mike Kalinowski, and Dustin Kifer along with contributors Brent Saylor, Steve Smail, Rick Rarer, and Nate Steis and photographers Dave Cyphert and Kyle Yates.

“We’re really excited to add Mike and Jared to our staff,” said EYT President Jake Bauer. “They are exactly what we were looking for – professional sports journalists who will have a positive impact on the local sports community.”

“I’m confident that their combination of experience and knowledge of the local sports scene will help us continue our goal of providing the best sports coverage in the region.”

Bauer said local sports fans can expect to see an influx of high school sports news on the Explore network as football season approaches.

Explore also plans to continue its live video coverage of area high school sports.

ABOUT EYT MEDIA GROUP, INC.

EYT Media Group, Inc., established in 2010, is a fast-growing media company based in Clarion, Pa. The company operates a network of hyperlocal news and information websites in Western Pennsylvania, including www.CookForest.com, www.explore814.com, www.exploreClarion.com, www.exploreJeffersonPA.com, www.exploreVenango.com, www.D9Sports.com. The network of sites attracts over 1,000,000 users per month.