UMass Lowell's Director of Athletic Media Relations Chris O'Donnell was named the 2012 recipient of the Irving T. Marsh Award for the University division by the Eastern College Athletic Conference-Sports Information Directors' Association (ECAC-SIDA).

Presented annually since 1966, the Irving T. Marsh Awards are given to ECAC Sports Information Directors Association members who have exhibited excellence in the field of sports information. The award will be presented at the spring workshop, held in June.

“We are deeply proud of Chris,” said Dana Skinner, Director of Athletics at UMass Lowell. “This prestigious award acknowledges his fine work over many years and we congratulate him.”

O'Donnell, currently in his 19^th year in the field, joined UMass Lowell in the fall of 1999, where he oversees the University's media relations duties for its 16 Division II sports and Division I ice hockey team.

“I am so thrilled and honored to receive the Marsh Award,” said O'Donnell. “Being nominated for it is an honor in itself, but receiving it is a dream. I am so grateful to the ECAC-SIDA board for their consideration, and especially David Alexander at Saint Rose for nominating me.”

“I accept the Marsh Award on behalf of all the good folks I've worked alongside. In this business, you are as good as the people with whom you surround yourself.”

Prior to accepting a post with the River Hawks, O'Donnell spent four years at Franklin Pierce University (1995-99) and one year at the Rochester Institute of Technology (1994-95). A native of Clifton Park, NY, he got his start as a volunteer at Siena College in 1993-94 after working as a reporter for The Saratogian for two years.

During his time at UMass Lowell, the school has hosted a number of NCAA events, including the NCAA Field Hockey Championship (2003-04, 2007), the NCAA Men's Basketball East Regional (2003-04), the NCAA Baseball East Regional (2000-03), and nine NCAA East Region men's and women's cross country championships.

O'Donnell has consistently placed UMass Lowell on the national stage, successfully pitching stories to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, New York Times, and National Public Radio. O'Donnell has also helped place six athletes and coaches in Sports Illustrated's Faces in the Crowd.

A 1991 graduate of Oneonta State University with a degree in speech communication, O'Donnell and his wife, Carrie, along with their sons Christopher (10) and Brady (8), reside in Newburyport, Mass.