There is a photo of me on freshman year drop-off day standing outside of Jewett with a New York Rangers shirt on and a New York Mets hat on my head. Until I arrived at Vassar, I had gone to the same school my entire life, from age three to my senior year of high school. Though I am on a sports team now, I was not recruited for athletics, and the social aspect of coming to college without an existing social network was intimidating. I thought that if I was wearing my favorite teams’ gear I might have an easier time breaking the ice with my new classmates, and hopefully making new friends.
As I had hoped, my love for sports sparked friendships. Sophomore year, I got close with Nick Villamil ’25 who was my roommate’s teammate. He was also the Sports Editor of The Misc at the time, and as we exchanged our hottest takes about the upcoming football season, he persuaded me to write an article on Week 1 of the NFL season. Since that first 1,600 word article—well over my assigned limit—I was hooked. I wrote that article, and then another on Week 2, and then Week 3 and from there I became a regular contributor. For inspiring the confidence in me to write that first article, I owe Nick a tremendous amount of gratitude. Without him, my sports takes would not make it out of my group chats and lunches with friends. Before he ran for (and became) Senior Editor, Nick convinced me to apply for Sports Editor. I had been involved with The Misc for less than a year and felt woefully unprepared. After we both stepped into our new roles, Nick continued mentoring me with patience and kindness, balancing his responsibilities as Senior Editor with his commitment to nurturing the transition of the Sports section.
The section was churning out two to four articles a week with a handful of committed writers. Willem, Ben, Maryam, Allen, Billy and many more: thank you. At the same time, my roommate Casey McMenamin started writing consistently for the Sports section. Casey quickly became Assistant Sports Editor and later co-Sports Editor with me.
I love The Misc Sports section because it is a prism for admiring the accomplishments of the student athletes at Vassar while bringing together sports enthusiasts to share their views. Casey sees eye-to-eye with me on this vision, and supports the Sports section’s mission to build community. A “thank you” is not enough. As senior year wore on, Casey picked up the slack whenever my senioritis got the best of me, laying out articles, emailing writers, editing pieces and recruiting reporters to maintain the vibrance of the section. Casey—I am going to miss our last minute article writing and the hour or so we spent every Tuesday afternoon laying out the section, debriefing our week and planning for the one ahead. From your math tutoring to us doing our best to hold in our laughter in class, I cannot imagine going to Vassar and not getting to know you like a brother. In moments of doubt I often think, “what would Casey do,” and I almost always come up with the right decision. I admire your humility and kindness, and cherish our friendship. Thank you for being the Woodward to my Bernstein.
As Casey and I approached the end of senior year having renovated the Sports section and recruited dozens of writers, we mulled over who might inherit the section.
David Bray, Holland Kaplan and Armaan Desai have been the lifeblood of the Sports section since getting to campus three years ago. Their passion for everything from the University of Colorado football team to the WNBA filled each issue with engaging articles that brought Misc readers into a world of sports fandom. I am excited to see the Sports section thrive under their leadership.
I did not write for my high school newspaper, but I have always loved sports. It has been a privilege to write for and edit at The Miscellany News. I appreciate every Misc member who I wrote for, edited or edited me and worked with over the past years. Thank you to Maryam, Charlotte, Carina and Alli—the EiCs who had an impressive amount of patience for the sports section and our unique approach. Thank you to the Senior Editors from the last two years for sifting through typo-riddled drafts from first-time journalists (including myself). Finally, thank you to anyone who ever took the time to read, write or edit a Miscellany News Sports article—thank you for supporting our mission. My time at The Misc is a highlight of my time at Vassar. I hope that future sports writers do not take their role for granted: Whether one or one hundred people read your writing, you have the ability to build community and tell critical stories. #ATTACK