Sell attended Northern Bedford High School, where he participated in multiple sports. In addition to running he was a wrestler as well as a wide receiver on the football team, and did not join the track team until his sophomore year.[3] His best track times by the end of his senior year were 4:28 (min:sec) in the 1600-meter and 10:06 in the 3200-meter.
Collegiate
Sell began at Messiah College,[4] then transferred to study at Saint Francis University, where his athletic career reached new heights. He represented SFU at the 2000 NCAA Division I XC Championships, where he ran the 10K in 31:17.1 and was a two time All-American.[5]