By Brenna Eller
McPHERSON, Kan. — Ad Astra Radio is excited to announce and welcome the most recent addition to the McPherson team.
Lane Gillespie, born and raised in Topeka, Kan., is the new McPherson Sports Director. Gillespie will be offering play-by-play coverage as the Voice of the McPherson High School Bullpups and Voice of the McPherson College Bulldogs for the teams’ basketball seasons.
Casey Justus, Ad Astra Radio Sales Manager for McPherson said, “I am thrilled to welcome Lane Gillespie as our new McPherson Sports Director. His expertise and passion for sports are a perfect fit for McPherson athletics. I have no doubt that Lane will be a tremendous asset, not only to Ad Astra, but also to the McPherson community at large. I am excited to see the positive impact he will undoubtedly have. Welcome aboard, Lane!”
Gillespie graduated from the University of Kansas in May of 2022 with a Bachelor of Science in News and Information and a minor in Sports Management.
“While at KU, I worked for the student radio station, 90.7 FM KJHK in their sports staff, where I announced countless football and basketball games,” Gillespie said. “During my senior year, I also worked for Kansas Athletics as an announcer for volleyball and women’s soccer in the fall.”
According to Gillespie, his proudest achievement was working as the Voice of KU Baseball in the spring of 2022, announcing all 55 games that season and being a part of the team.
Sports has been a passion of Gillespie’s since he was a child. Hearing a variety of play-by-play announcers always intrigued him, so he decided to pursue media/broadcast as a career.
“I love the way they tell a story about every game, and I decided that was what I wanted to do for a living: Tell stories and cover sports,” Gillespie said.
Gillespie’s favorite sports to announce are football, basketball and baseball, but if he had to choose a top favorite, it would be basketball.
“I was blessed to go to KU where basketball is practically a religion and where their culture is winning,” Gillespie said. “I called many basketball games at KU for the student radio station, and I enjoyed its fast-paced, always moving environment. There’s not a second where you can look away from a basketball game.”
Prior to his new role with Ad Astra Radio, Gillespie worked for WIBW, the TV news station out of Topeka. His position there was Multimedia Journalist, covering both news and sports. He had worked for WIBW since August of 2022 and even interned with the station in high school.
Looking forward to his new position, Gillespie is ready to be the new Voice of the Bulldogs and the Voice of the Bullpups.
Chris Shank, Owner of Ad Astra Radio shared that he is also excited to welcome Gillespie to the McPherson team.
“McPherson is a proud sports town and has a rich history of the Bullpups being on radio. From Claude Hughes to today, there’s been quite the tradition and a long line of quality broadcasters as the Voice of the ‘Pups,” Shank said. “Lane picked up a lot of quality experience during his days in school at KU and now at WIBW TV. We’re excited to have someone of his caliber joining our team. We broadcast more Kansas high school sports at Ad Astra Radio than anyone else in the state and we wouldn’t be able to pull it off without having talented folks like Lane.”
Gillespie said he is not only looking forward to showing off his talents and sharing all the exciting things happening in the area, but also being a part of the tight-knit community of McPherson, Kansas.
“Kansas is where my heart lies and I’m grateful to be a part of this amazing state and community,” Gillespie said.
Shane Backhus, McPherson High School Activities Director believes Gillespie’s experience with KU Athletics and WIBW will serve him well in his new position.
“We are excited to work with Lane in his new role at Ad Astra Radio covering the Bullpups,” Backus said.
