Sport Management  News

On Comfrey Crescent in Orléans, a suburb of Ottawa, there was one thing that always brought the children out of their yards and houses and onto the street.

No, not the ice cream truck. Instead, Sarah Thompson had come out to play.

By the time she was 12, Thompson had turned into a fantastic hockey player. She would strategically place her hockey net in the street to avoid hitting cars and rifle shot after shot off her shooting pad in the net.

“All the little kids would come out because Sarah’s outside and they wanted to play with her,” says Annette Thompson, Sarah’s mother. “They would sit on the grass watching her take her shots. She was a real role model for the little ones.”

Starting May 16, Thompson will be surrounded by a new group of children who are eager for role models. Thompson ‘24, a sport management major in Falk College and a forward on the Syracuse University women’s ice hockey team, will be in Buenos Aires, Argentina, teaching children from a low-income neighborhood how to play street hockey. Thompson’s “Sticks Together” project is part of a sport development humanitarian program organized by International Volunteer HQ.

Thompson will be joined in Argentina by Tracey Edson ’24, a sport management major who will also teach sports and chronicle the trip by filming Thompson tutoring the children. The program will run for three weeks, and Thompson and Edson arranged to have nets, hockey sticks, plastic pucks and T-shirts shipped to Argentina for the children.

Thompson learned about the impact an adult can have on a child from her mother, who has been a teacher at Our Lady of Wisdom elementary school in Ottawa for 25 years. She also remembers attending sports camps as a child, and how she looked up to the young adults who were teaching her.

Now, it’s her time to be the teacher.

“I think of all the opportunities that I had to play so many different sports, and there’s kids in these underprivileged communities that all they have is a soccer ball and that’s all they get to play,” Thompson says. “What if you stink at soccer? I know I stink at soccer, that’s not my favorite sport to play.

“I was lucky enough to play everything, and I think that’s what’s special about teaching another sport,” she continues. “I’ve always loved the idea of teaching kids sports and what better way than going to a place where they often don’t get to have those experiences where someone can teach them something new.”

Game On

When she was 6, Thompson was one of those kids in the grass watching the bigger kids play. She had started playing ice hockey, collecting hockey cards, and watching NHL games, and she was captivated by the street hockey being played by the older boys in the neighborhood.

“I started playing on my own, just to see if I could keep up with them, and eventually I would just sit on the sidelines and poke my head in and see if they’d let me play,” Thompson says. “And it eventually became, yeah, you can go in next if you want and I was like, ‘Sure!’ They’d strap me in there (in goal) and that’s how I started to get invited.”

The boys, as Thompson says, were “nice about it”–they shot tennis balls when Thompson was playing goalie instead of the traditional hard rubber street hockey balls. But soon enough, the boys needed help keeping up with Thompson, who played for premier youth teams in Ottawa and Ontario, and for Canada’s under-18 team in the Canada-U.S. Summer Series and the 2019-20 World Championships.

Through it all, the neighborhood remained the center of Thompson’s hockey universe. When Sarah, her younger sister Kate and Annette Thompson would get home from their schools at 3:30, the nets would come out, the fruit would be sliced up for snacks, and it was game on.

“By then the kids were coming from three streets down,” Annette Thompson says. “We moved homes (in Orléans) when Sarah was 12 and Kate was 8, but when we brought out the nets the kids would still come ripping around to play.”

Thompson entered Syracuse University in the Fall of 2019 and played in 19 games for the Orange as a freshman. This past season, Thompson played in all 32 games for a Syracuse team that finished with a 15-11-6 overall record, won the College Hockey America regular season and tournament titles for the first time in program history, and secured the team’s second appearance in the Division I NCAA Tournament, where the Orange reached the regional semifinal.

After helping establish Syracuse as a hockey school, Thompson has now set her sights on turning a neighborhood in Argentina into a street hockey hotbed.

Sticks Together

Thompson wanted to make a humanitarian trip last summer, but it was put on hold by the COVID-19 pandemic. Thompson says the delay was “a blessing in disguise” because it gave her another year to prepare for her “Sticks Together” project. Thompson collected donated new and used equipment, created a website, and started a GoFundMe page to pay for travel expenses, shipping the equipment, and the International Volunteer HQ program fees that cover housing and two meals per day.

“It just kind of spiraled. I told my mom and she said, ‘It’s crazy, it’s a lot, but I love it’ and she said I have no doubt that you’ll figure it out,” Thompson says. “I had so many people I had to connect with to help me put it together.”

One of those people is Edson, who worked with the hockey team as an intern with the Syracuse University Athletic Communications Department. As an intern, Edson was learning under one of the best sports communications experts in the business, her mother, Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director/Communications Sue Cornelius Edson.

Tracey Edson had heard through a friend that Thompson was planning a trip to Argentina to teach street hockey.

“I thought that’s a great story to promote that the athletes are doing these meaningful things outside of their sport and outside of school,” Edson says. “We had a meeting in the fall about her trip and by the end of it, I asked if there was someone down there who’s taking pictures or video that they can send to us. I’m thinking about the media side of it.”

When Edson asked that question, Thompson asked her, “What about you?”

“She invited me and I was honored,” Edson says. “It’s going to be a trip of a lifetime and to be able to do it with one of your really close friends, that’s something that a lot of people can’t say that they did.”

Edson, who played basketball and golf growing up, will also work with the children when she isn’t filming.

“We both have found a passion for sports and a passion for teaching so to be able to share that with those kids and be a role model for them will be special as maybe it’s something they continue with in their lives,” Edson says. “Sport brings a lot of great things and I want those kids to experience that.”

Impact on Kids

Thompson has worked extensively with International Volunteer HQ on the logistics of the after-school program, which will involve children from Recoleta, a neighborhood in the northern part of Buenos Aires near the Rio de la Plata (River Plate). Thompson and Edson will spend two weeks instructing about 15 children and some teachers who can then instruct the children after Thompson and Edson leave.

Thompson and Edson will have interpreters provided by International Volunteer HQ to help bridge the language barrier with the Spanish-speaking children. All the equipment they transport to Argentina will stay with the school.

Field hockey is a popular sport in Argentina, but the way a field hockey player holds a stick is much different than the way a hockey player holds a stick. Ice hockey is a foreign concept in Argentina, where the summers are ridiculously hot, the winters are warm, and the last significant snowfall was in 1975.

“I’m curious to see if they’re going to have any idea what (hockey) looks like,” Thompson says. “It’ll be cool if we can bring a computer and show them me playing (at Syracuse) and the NHL and that this is ice hockey.

“We have no idea what we’re walking into, and the exciting part is that as much as we’ve been planning this project forever, you’re not going to really know until you’re there,” Thompson adds.

Even so, that hasn’t stopped Thompson and Edson from contemplating a similar trip to South Africa next year. And Annette Thompson, Sarah’s mother, won’t be surprised if her daughter turns these trips into a lifelong journey.

“She wants to have an impact with kids, and this could be a door opening to her where she can work with a nonprofit organization that brings sports to children,” Annette Thompson says. “She has spent a lot of time with organized sports, but this trip will remind her of her fondest memories of playing pickup hockey with her friends.”

Visit Thompson’s website to learn more about her Sticks Together project. To donate for this year’s trip to Argentina or next year’s humanitarian trip, visit the Sticks Together GoFundMe page.

Matthew Mulvaney, an associate professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Science and chair of the Faculty Council, thanked all faculty members who submitted nominations and the nominees who provided documentary support for the council’s consideration.

“This is both one of the most rewarding and one of the challenge parts of serving on the Faculty Council,” Mulvaney said. “We had a large number of nominations that came in, all of them were excellent, and all (faculty members) are making very important contributions to the college. It’s always a hard decision and this year was no exception.”

Here’s a look at the 2022 honorees with comments from their award presenters:

Kenneth Marfilius

Director of Online and Distance Education and assistant teaching professor in the School of Social Work
Falk Faculty of the Year Award for Excellence in Service

From presenter Yvonne Smith, associate professor in the School of Social Work:

“In 2021 Dr. Marfilius simultaneously served as director of the Undergraduate Social Work Program and the Online Master of Social Work Program, roles which, in their own right, require extraordinary vision, dedication, organization, and time. In light of his exemplary service, he was named Director of Online and Distance Education. This new position—a first for Falk College—puts him at the helm of five rapidly growing online programs that make Falk College’s graduate curricula increasingly accessible to students across the nation and around the world.

“The significant challenge of designing, staffing, and managing these nascent programs is hard to overestimate. Dr. Marfilius, a veteran of the United States Air Force, has proven to be a steady, competent pilot who can, as we often say at Falk College, ‘build the plane as we fly it.’ In 2021, Dr. Marfilius’ exemplary service was recognized with the Syracuse University Center for Disability Resources 2021 Faculty Recognition Award and the Syracuse University One University Assessment Award for best use of results.

“But his achievements in college and departmental leadership roles are only some of the ways Dr. Marfilius has served our community. He routinely mentors students and serves as a liaison to the D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families. Notably, Dr. Marfilius has emerged as a leading public voice on the mental health needs of returning veterans and their families. He has done all of this while teaching graduates and undergraduates and serving as PI (principal investigator) or co-PI on multiple research and training grants.”

David Meluni

Assistant teaching professor in the Department of Sport Management
Evan Weissman Memorial Faculty of the Year Award for Teaching Excellence

From presenter Jane Burrell, associate teaching professor in the Nutrition Science and Dietetics program:

“Dave Meluni is a teacher who consistently receives excellent student evaluations. He is at the forefront of innovations in teaching, both in terms of classroom practices and course development, to meet emerging trends in the field. He also is exceptionally strong at developing collaborations with high-profile industry leaders to complement course content and provide students with real-world engagement opportunities.”

“In 2021 Dave taught seven courses. As his nomination letter highlights, Dave is an exceptional teacher ‘specializing in courses that are challenging to find qualified faculty to teach.’ Dave teaches students to connect to real-world experiences in sales and marketing that prepare graduates to obtain highly competitive and lucrative employment opportunities. Dave is ahead of the curve in teaching and innovation. A prime example includes the rapid development of a new course, Name, Image, and Likeness, which he created in response to the NCAA’s 2021 ruling that enables student-athletes to monetize their name. This was the first and only such course in the country that provides guidance and tangible skills that will prepare student athletes and their advocates to benefit from their name and talents.

“Dave also brings his expertise to bear outside of the classroom by overseeing the sales club, which was very successful in the National Collegiate Sales Competition. As a teaching professor, preparing highly qualified students and graduates is essential. Dave’s experience in the profession, his infectious enthusiasm, and his willingness to help his students grow and interact with industry make him an exceptional teacher.”

Latha Ramalingam

Assistant professor in the Nutrition Science and Dietetics program
Falk Faculty of the Year Award for Excellence in Research

From presenter Patrick Walsh, associate professor in the Department of Sport Management:

“Dr. Ramalingam, who is in her second year in Falk College, had an extremely productive 2021. She published eight peer-reviewed articles, several of which are in top-tiered journals in nutrition and one in a highly respected journal in the field of cardiovascular sciences. In addition, she co-authored five conference presentations and was invited by Syracuse University’s Department of Biology to give a research talk titled ‘Early life programming of obesity.’ On top of the publications and presentations, Dr. Ramalingam submitted five internal research grants as PI (principal investigator) totaling $48,000, all of which were funded, and submitted an impressive eight external research grants totaling over $1 million.

“Her commitment to research is also evident through the mentoring of students. Her mentorship as advisor to two master’s students in Nutrition Science and nine undergraduate students in her research lab has led to student publications, SOURCE grant funding, and a Pre-Doctoral Fellowship award from the American Society of Nutrition–the first time a Nutrition Science student at Syracuse University has received this honor.

“Dr. Ramalingam notes that her work ‘focuses on the role of bioactives, specifically fish oil, in preventing maternal and paternal obesity. Approximately 30% of the women of reproductive age suffer from obesity. Dietary intervention during this critical fetal developmental window might provide opportunities to decrease the burden of metabolic disease later in life.’ It is Dr. Ramalingam’s research goal is to provide additional scientific evidence to reduce/prevent obesity using non-pharmacological approaches.”

Thirteen members of the Class of 2022 have been named Falk College Scholars. Falk Scholars represent undergraduate students who display academic excellence, exceptional campus and community engagement, independent research and creative work, innovation in their disciplinary field, and personal integrity. Designation as a Falk Scholar is the highest academic award conferred by Falk College on graduating seniors.

We asked the Class of 2022 Falk Scholars to describe their most meaningful experiences at Syracuse University and here’s what they wrote:

Drew Disanto, Sport Analytics

Syracuse has brought me numerous opportunities, memories, and experiences that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. My most important experience was through the Syracuse Soccer Analytics Club. My peers and I started the club during my freshman year, despite knowing very little about analytics or programming. As its vice president, this club was extremely helpful in giving me first-hand experience with data, programming, and data analysis.

Even more memorable was the aftermath of the club. Submitting our club work to various conferences and competitions was exhilarating enough. When our paper started to win and place at these competitions, I was ecstatic. It was validating to see our hard work being recognized and praised by several industry professionals. This club was exceedingly beneficial to my career here at Syracuse, and I do not think I’d be where I am today without everything I learned through it.

Samantha Jezak, Nutrition Science and Dietetics

Falk College has been a close community for me over the past exciting, rigorous, and innovative 4 years of my life. I quickly became involved in nutrition research my freshman year. It wasn’t necessarily what I had formulated in my head (white lab coat, goggles, combustion); it was literature review, consisting of PubMed readings after readings and discussions with my research advisor, Dr. (Jessica) Garay. Little did I know these readings would lead to the research project that has ultimately defined my career path.

It sounds glamorous to be a “scientist,” but nobody tells you about the tedious work that must be done behind the scenes to bring a project to life. As demanding as it was, I am so fortunate to have the experience of writing, applying, and conducting my own research project, especially alongside one of my most well-respected peers, Olivia Templeton. This research experience has taught me things that can’t be taught in the classroom. I am honored to say that Falk College has molded me into a well-prepared individual for pursuing a career I am truly passionate about. I look forward to continuing to explore nutrition research through a graduate program in Biochemical and Molecular Nutrition at Tufts University.

Preston Klaus, Sport Analytics

Syracuse University has provided me with a multitude of experiences including, but not limited to, a negotiation class in the law school and the first ever Name, Image, and Likeness course in the country (in the Department of Sport Management). However, my most rewarding one has come this year leading the Basketball Analytics Club.

The club introduces basketball analytics in a fun way to a new audience and connects people through sport. I have seen the club transform from a small group of students without structure to a true university community that can carry the club forward. It has been incredibly rewarding to give back to the younger students who want to follow a similar path. Leading this club has transformed my presentational skills and Syracuse University has helped me mature into the person I am today.

Mackenzie Mangos, Sport Analytics

The most influential experience has been my founding/serving as president of the Sport Analytics Women (SAW) Club. After my freshman year, I saw a need for this club – we only had three females in the entire major! Not only is this a problem in the program, but in the industry as well.

The club serves as a positive advocate for women in sport analytics. It is very rewarding to see the club making a difference and it allows the female underclassmen to have supportive upperclassmen to look up to, something I wish I had when I was a freshman. Syracuse University has helped me to grow as a person and as a leader.

Nathan Redmond, Exercise Science

One of the most important experiences I have had at Syracuse University is the time I have spent with Syracuse University Ambulance (SUA). I became a member of SUA my freshman year and since then I have been responsible for providing emergency medical care to the Syracuse University campus and the surrounding communities. Within SUA I have held many positions, including mentor to the incoming members. I am responsible for teaching and training new members in the basic skills and assessment strategies necessary for their role on the ambulance.

SUA has been a place of support, community, family, loyalty, and genuine care during my tenure at Syracuse University. Additionally, I have worked as a crew chief, driver, trainer, and special event supervisor, which has been extremely impactful on my development as an EMS provider but more importantly helped to develop my leadership, teaching, personal growth, and public speaking skills. In general, SUA has reinforced my commitment and passion to becoming a physician.

Dominic Samangy, Sport Analytics

Over the past four years at Syracuse, I’ve had the amazing opportunity to spend each one with the men’s basketball team as a student manager. Being able to work closely with Coach (Jim) Boeheim and his accomplished coaching staff has been an eye-opening experience and has certainly guided me in my development as a basketball professional.

I’ve also spent the past few years collaborating with my classmates and professors on research studies covering basketball and soccer topics. Through such efforts, I’ve had to opportunity to present work at prestigious conferences such as the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference and Carnegie Mellon Sports Analytics Conference, and I’ll travel to London this May to represent SU and Falk College at the 8th Western Conference on Football and Finance. Outside of my time on campus, I’ve also utilized my Falk-driven skillset to serve as a consultant for NBA agencies over the past two NBA Draft classes. All in all, my time at Falk College at Syracuse University has not only prepared me for my future in sports but has provided a family and support system that I am truly grateful for.

Cooper Shawver, Sport Analytics

The most important experience I had during my time at Syracuse University and Falk College was joining the Baseball Sabermetrics Club. The club inspired my desire to pursue both baseball competitions and research. For example, myself and four other students won the Arizona Sabermetrics Case Competition for our work researching pitchers’ effectiveness for the third time through a batting order.

Also, I am currently finishing my senior thesis on Major League Baseball player valuation. Despite all my experiences at Falk being memorable, the Baseball Sabermetrics Club had the greatest influence on my career at Syracuse University.

Choyang Lorane Sherpa, Social Work

Throughout my four years at Syracuse University, one of the most influential experiences was becoming involved in Kesem. Kesem is a student-led, nonprofit organization that provides a week-long, free summer camp, in addition to a year-long support system, for children affected by a parent or guardian’s cancer.

Joining this organization my freshman year has granted me the opportunity to grow and develop my skills as a leader. It has undoubtedly influenced who I am as a person, my career goals, friendships, and connections I have made with the community and the families in the Syracuse area.

Dorbor Tarley, Human Development and Family Science

In my sophomore year, I began an independent research study under Dr. Matthew Mulvaney that explored bias against Black maternal patients. My research focused on investigating the interpersonal factors that might underlie the insensitivity toward Black women in medical spaces. My research experience has led to my involvement with SOURCE (Syracuse Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Engagement) as a student research mentor, my involvement as a McNair scholar, and my current role as a peer health advocate at Planned Parenthood.

Given the significance of my research findings, I worked with the McNair Scholars Program and SOURCE to present my research locally and nationally. With my research, I was able to funnel my passions into a critically engaged study that might impact medicine’s understanding of the Black maternal health crisis. Overall, my experiences at Syracuse engaging in research and civic engagement developed into a passion for health equity. This passion catalyzed my desire to study public health and get my Master of Science in Public Health at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Olivia Templeton, Nutrition Science and Dietetics

The most important experience I have gained at Syracuse University was piloting my own research study analyzing how diet quality changes when converting from an omnivore (meat-eating) diet to a vegetarian diet. Through SOURCE (Syracuse Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Engagement), I was able to receive grants to fund the research, which allowed participants to visit the ACE Center (Nutrition Assessment, Consultation and Education) within Falk College for lab visits. Participating in research was one of the reasons I chose to attend Syracuse University, and I am grateful this came to fruition.

Cathryn Willing, Public Health

As a first-year public health student, I enrolled in the Healthy You Practicum course taught by Dr. Luvenia Cowart. I quickly came to love writing and talking about health issues and found the formula and publication process extremely interesting. After my first semester, in which I was published twice, I reached out to Dr. Cowart to see if I could continue writing for the magazine and the following summer, Dr. Cowart reached out to me asking if I would be interested in a copy editor position.

I attribute much of my successes to the magazine and Dr. Cowart. She trusted me to lead the program, which naturally helped me grow as writer and editor. In my last few semesters working with the magazine, we expanded the magazine’s production team and I was promoted to managing editor. I wrote an article about a new–at the time–faculty member, Dr. Bernard Appiah, and we later became colleagues on a research project funded by SOURCE (Syracuse Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Engagement). I truly think of Falk College and my public health experience in terms of the magazine and the five publications I was able to oversee from an editorial position. Given the freedom to expand my creativity through writing, editing, and leading is something I will forever be grateful for.

Megan Willkens, Public Health

The most rewarding experience throughout my time at Falk College was becoming involved with undergraduate research. In collaboration with Dr. David Larsen, I completed a project assessing the association between indoor residual spray for malaria control and child cognitive development in sub-Saharan Africa.

This research led to other opportunities, including my contribution to conduct a survey that assessed the capacity of New York State wastewater treatment plants to support wastewater surveillance for COVID-19, and data analysis with the New York State Health Department to expand the NYS wastewater surveillance program. In combination, these experiences have allowed me to develop skills in research and grow personally and professionally.

Sewina Yu, Exercise Science

It is difficult to choose just one experience that has been the most important or impactful on me. However, being in Dr. Joon Young Kim’s Clinical Research Lab in the Department of Exercise Science has taught me invaluable analytical and research skills. I was able to present two research critiques at an international conference, submit a proposal for an undergraduate SOURCE (Syracuse Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Engagement) grant, learn about IRB (Institutional Review Board) approval, and submit a poster for Falk Research Day.

I am so grateful to have had these opportunities and experiences in Dr. Kim’s lab. Along with this experience, working at the Barnes Center as a personal trainer has also helped me apply what I have learned in my exercise science classes to guide clients toward their fitness and health goals. These two experiences taught me skills that will undoubtedly help me succeed at physical therapy school.

When it came to making the most of her Syracuse University education, Mackenzie Mangos ’22 knocked it out of the ballpark. Mangos, a sport analytics major in Falk College, took full advantage of the program’s opportunities, focused on her goal of working in Major League Baseball and scored her dream job. After graduation, she’ll join the New York Yankees as a quantitative analysis associate in the baseball operations department. What more could a devout Yankees fan ask for—especially one from a Bronx Bombers-loving family with a dog named Jeter? “I figured I’d work for some business or consultant before even getting a job in baseball—let alone in player analytics with the Yankees,” she says. “It worked out great!”

When Mangos reports to Yankee Stadium, she will be ready for action. She fulfilled her graduation requirements in three years, completed minors in economics and information management and technology to complement her major, participated in baseball case competitions and prominent internships and published research. She was also named a 2022 Falk College class marshal, a role in which she’ll deliver a speech at the college’s Convocation and lead Falk graduates at Commencement. In bringing together her passions for sports and statistics, Mangos carved out a path that can serve as a model for other young women in the male-dominated, multibillion-dollar industry. One of three female sport analytics majors when she joined the program, she founded the student organization Sport Analytics Women (SAW) in fall 2020 to bring together female students with shared interests and increase opportunities for research projects and professional development. “Mackenzie’s impact on our program and the University will be felt for years after she graduates,” says Jeremy Losak ’16, assistant professor of sport management. “She has been a champion for women in sports and sport analytics.”

Among her accolades, Mangos was selected as a Berlin Scholar, an honor that awards a stipend, research experience with a faculty mentor, and other benefits to outstanding seniors in sport analytics. She served as a teaching assistant for Falk’s Berlin Sport Analytics Academy last summer, leading activities for high school students interested in sport analytics. She also worked as a research assistant for Losak and valued his mentoring and collaborating with him on projects, including one that examines the impact of college conference TV networks on fan attendance at football and basketball games. The first part of their research, which focused on football, was published in the Journal of Economics and Finance. “Mackenzie has been an integral part of my research team, leading data collection efforts and preparing presentation-quality visualizations,” he says. “She is a trailblazer in the sport analytics space and a future professional superstar. Her upcoming role with the New York Yankees is just the beginning.”

Becoming Orange

Mangos was a three-sport athlete in high school in Williamson, New York, captaining the varsity soccer, basketball and softball teams. Softball was her favorite and, as a catcher, she worked with a pitcher who threw 10 different pitches, a challenging assignment that led her to think about pitching patterns and batters’ history. “I knew that the combination of my passion for sports and math would make for a really cool career,” she says. “When I came across the sport analytics program at Syracuse, there was no doubt that’s what I wanted to do and where I wanted to be.”

Good call. Once on campus, Mangos followed her game plan. She joined the Baseball Statistics and Sabermetrics Club and participated with fellow Syracuse students in Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) Diamond Dollars Case Competitions, which challenge college teams to evaluate baseball operations’ issues, dive into data and offer solutions in a week’s time. “The SABR competitions are a great experience to apply everything we’re learning in class to something with that real-world feel,” she says. This spring’s SABR competition asked teams for ideas on how to shorten the game of baseball, which runs counter to the philosophy of many baseball enthusiasts. “Most of us are baseball traditionalists in this department,” says Mangos, who serves as director of programming for the club.

Along with mastering the intricacies of statistical computing, data visualization and managing databases, Mangos benefited from notable internship experiences. She was selected for the NBA’s Future Analytics Stars Program, which featured mentoring, networking and professional development, a group project and a workshop focused on the league’s player and business analytics. She also received a Women in Sports Tech Inc. fellowship that placed her as a business intelligence intern with KORE Software last summer. The company specializes in business analytics for the sports and entertainment industries, including fan demographics, and Mangos’ job was to pull information from databases and create interactive information dashboards for KORE clients. “I’d always envisioned myself working for a team,” she says. “In this internship, I’d be in a Zoom meeting working with a different professional sports team every day and was making reports for them, so it gave me a different perspective.”

Fantastic Opportunities

Mangos treasures the opportunities she’s received through Falk College and credits Francesco Riverso G’05, academic advisor for sport analytics majors, for his guidance and support, including connecting her with the Yankees. “He is a great resource,” she says. “I tell all the new students, ‘Make sure Francesco knows what your dream job is because he knows everyone in this industry.’”

Mangos holds a work-study job in the Falk admissions office, serves as a Falk Ambassador providing prospective students with information and as a peer advisor who helps incoming students adjust to college life. She enjoys assisting other students and sees it as a way to promote and build the program. “Falk has a good focus on experiential learning, so you can apply things you’re learning in class. I think the case competitions and a lot of the projects we do really set us apart,” Mangos says, also noting the valuable role that Falk’s Sport Management Advisory Council and strong alumni network play in supporting students.

With graduation approaching, Mangos is wrapping up her year-long senior thesis project. The topic has taken her back to her catcher days: She’s crunching data on whether home-plate umpires from one season to the next develop a bias against catchers who’ve previously influenced them with their mastery of pitch framing—positioning their mitts in certain spots to deceptively earn strike calls. “I’m super passionate about it,” she says.

Then it’s on to Yankee Stadium, where Mangos will put her love of the game and analytics skills to work. “It still feels pretty surreal,” she says. “I don’t think it’ll hit me until I show up on my first day.”

~ An SU Story by Jay Cox originally published on April 27, 2022.

How’s this for a Spring Break:

Seven days in Los Angeles, meeting more than 70 executives from 23 sports-related organizations, and riding at 125 mph in an official NASCAR pace car!

That’s how Allison Rosen ’24 and 17 of her Department of Sport Management classmates from Falk College spent Spring Break as they immersed themselves in LA’s sports industry.

“If I had to sum up the 2022 Los Angeles Immersion Trip in one word, that word would be INCREDIBLE!” Rosen wrote.

The trip to Southern California is part of a course (SPM 358) that allows students to interact with industry executives and practitioners from nearly every sector of the industry. The course explores business practices, marketing strategies, branding initiatives, social media outreach and the organizational culture of competing sports franchises and entities in the greater Los Angeles market.

“This course exposes students to the many differences of managing sports entities on the West Coast compared to the East,” said Michael Veley, director and chair of Sport Management and Rhonda S. Falk Endowed Professor who teaches the SPM 358 course. “Los Angeles has become the sports capital of the world and markets to an extremely diverse population of ethnic and cultural backgrounds. More than a dozen students who have taken this course have obtained jobs based on professional networking connections made on the LA Immersion trip.”

Los Angeles is home to 11 professional sports teams and host of the 2022 Super Bowl, 2022 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship Game and 2028 Summer Olympics, among other major sporting events.

A student perspective:

We asked Rosen to share her experiences and thoughts about the Los Angeles Immersion Trip, and this is what she wrote:

“I am so thankful for the opportunity to take this trip after COVID-19 put a two-year halt to it. None of it would have been possible had it not been for our incredible donors, Jeff and Andrea Lomasky. On behalf of everyone on this trip, we thank the Lomasky family for their generosity.

“We met with more than 20 organizations and 70 executives across different aspects of the sport industry over the course of our trip. It was somehow both exhausting and energizing at the same time! As someone who dreams of working in soccer, visiting LAFC (Los Angeles Football Club) and the LA Galaxy were two highlights for me.

“Other organizations we met with included the LA Rams, Hoag Classic, LA Clippers, LA Dodgers, LA Marathon, Legends, AEG, the Rose Bowl, and even NASCAR. We also met with (NBA legend) Bill Walton, which was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I loved learning about what makes each sport unique and comparing the sport industry on the West Coast to that on the East Coast.

“Top experiences included walking on the ice before an LA Kings game at Crypto.com Arena; being on the NFL Network; riding at 125 mph in an official NASCAR pace car (not my mom’s favorite part to hear about!); touring SoFi Stadium; eating tacos about two feet from the beach in Santa Monica; and walking through the LA Marathon setup at Dodger Stadium. Another highlight, which was by chance and not part of our itinerary, was running into U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team head coach Gregg Berhalter at O’Hare Airport (in Chicago) before catching our connecting flight to Syracuse.

“One of my favorite pieces of advice came from Martin Jarmond, director of athletics at UCLA. He said, ‘You can’t lead others until you lead yourself.’ This really stuck with me as this is something people need to hear more often. It falls in the same category as leading by example and self-confidence. If you don’t believe in yourself, how can you expect others to?

“Across the board, whether the industry professionals were SU (some even LA Trip) alumni or not, something I noticed was the passion to give back and grow the next generation. Everyone was so welcoming and, as a woman who wants to work in the industry, it was encouraging to have so many females in our meetings. Someday, wherever I end up, I hope there’s an immersion trip headed my way because I will 100 percent participate and host students at my office.

“We all owe a big thank you to Sport Management Director Michael Veley, Sport Management Internship Placement Coordinator Lisa Liparulo, and all of the executives we met with for making it such a worthwhile experience.”

During their trip, the students visited the Hoag Classic Country Club, Los Angeles Dodgers, UCLA Athletics, Los Angeles Football Club, NFL Network, Los Angeles Rams, So-Fi Stadium, Anheuser-Busch, Los Angeles Kings, Anschutz Entertainment Group, LA Sports & Entertainment Commission, Los Angeles Clippers, Auto Club Speedway, Rose Bowl, Dignity Health Sports Park, Westwood One Radio, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles Marathon, Crypto.com Arena and Legends.

To learn more about the students’ experiences, check out their 2022 Los Angeles Immersion Blog.

Allison Rosen is a Sport Management major and Public Communications Studies minor who is a current member and former communications co-chair for Women In Sports and Events (WISE) at Syracuse University; a student manager and photographer/content creator for the University’s women’s soccer team; an intern for Syracuse University Athletic Department Creative Services; and chair of the Syracuse Sport Management Club’s Charity Sport Auction Donations Committee.

Four years ago, O’Connor visited Boston for the first time with his father, Dave O’Connor, to tour the headquarters of sports footwear and apparel company New Balance. On that same trip, the O’Connors drove to Syracuse to tour Syracuse University’s Falk College and meet with Sport Analytics academic advisor Francesco Riverso.

That was Michael’s first and only time on campus before he enrolled in Falk’s Department of Sport Management in the Fall of 2019. Now majoring in sport analytics with a minor in sport management/economics, O’Connor is set to graduate in May and start his professional career in sport analytics.

The Berlin Scholars went to Boston to attend the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, an annual event for professionals and students to discuss the increasing role of analytics in the sports industry. When Falk launched a degree in sport analytics in 2016, University Trustee and alumnus Andrew T. Berlin ’83 made a $1 million gift to provide scholarship and financial assistance to select undergraduate sport analytics students, support faculty research, and allow students to participate in student-focused sport analytical competitions and academic symposiums such as the Sports Analytics Conference.

“The MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference returned to Boston for the first time since before the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and having the opportunity to attend in-person as a senior was incredible. I attended the conference last year virtually, but I learned very quickly that the benefits that come with an in-person conference just can’t be captured in online breakout rooms. This event was one I’d been looking forward to since before arriving at Syracuse, so to finally be able to network and attend incredibly informative panel discussions with my friends and peers was a great experience.

“Personally, I enjoyed the wide variety of panels that the conference had to offer. This year offered more coverage of topics that aren’t discussed often enough in the sports landscape; for example, I attended the Title IX discussion and the conversation on transgender athletes in sports, two topics that have seen increased coverage over the last few weeks after recent events in Utah and the NCAA Swimming Championships.

“Providing opportunities for those with a background in data to broaden their perspectives and challenge their beliefs is one of the first steps in making meaningful change, and I thought those were two of the most informative and impactful panels of the conference.

“In addition to listening to those panel discussions, students attended various networking workshops, had industry professionals review their resumes, and explored various research projects that students from numerous colleges and universities had been working on. I enjoyed meeting with the authors of those research projects to gain insight on their process and methodology. I also met students from other universities that I had worked with virtually, and I hope those relationships will form stronger bonds between the various sport analytics cohorts at colleges across the country.

“We not only got to experience everything that the conference had to offer, but we also had the opportunity to tour the New Balance headquarters in Boston, along with the Boston Bruins’ practice facility and ‘The Track’ at New Balance, a brand-new multi-purpose athletic facility that is set to open to the public soon. My father, Dave O’Connor, is a national sales manager for team sports at New Balance and coordinated a walkthrough of their facilities and discussed opportunities available at New Balance, along with Francesco Riverso, our academic advisor.

“While this may not have been the most ‘analytically driven’ aspect of the weekend, it was an interesting opportunity for students to realize that there are opportunities to get involved in sport analytics that may not follow their traditional understanding of working in the industry but provide the same advantages and benefits as working for specific sports teams.

“Touring The Track at New Balance was definitely a highlight of the trip. I ran track-and-field in high school and have been closely following the construction of the new venue, so to get a first look at the building before it opened to the public was incredible. New Balance also has a sports science lab located on the first floor of The Track; a state-of-the-art facility that incorporates sports science and analytics to produce better results for athletes. There aren’t many labs like this elsewhere, let alone ones that allow tours for students with a passion for sport analytics.

“Every aspect of the tour was a wonderful experience, both from an educational and entertainment perspective. I’m incredibly grateful for Mr. Andrew Berlin for providing us the opportunity to attend the MIT Sloan Sport Analytics Conference and hope that future classes will enjoy similar opportunities!”

Michael O’Connor is a member of the Sport Analytics Learning Community, a resident advisor, president of Falk’s Football Analytics Club, and president of SU’s Otto Tunes tenor/bass a cappella club.