Editor’s Note: This is an op-ed written by editor-in-chief Dan Aulbach; any thoughts or opinions expressed are his own.
On May 7, 2025, I signed off as editor-in-chief of Center Field. 1,344 days before that, I did not know what I wanted to do with my life.
I walked into that first meeting on September 1, 2021, stood in the corner of Lowell Thomas room 141 and basked in the buzzing excitement around the room. Upperclassmen that seemed like full-fledged adults to me stating different hot takes about the Yankees or the Giants (ugh), and a laundry list of topics on the detailed whiteboard.
My first thought was probably why I decided to surround myself with New York sports fans (it ended up working out okay). My immediate thought after: What was my place in all this?
In the middle of the meeting, my first editor-in-chief, Bridget Reilly, read off the list of potential story ideas when she read off one about Donté Stallworth, a formal NFL wide receiver that was doing a guest speaker series about the freshmen class common read.
If I was more advantageous at the time, I could’ve asked to interview Stallworth myself before or after the conversation. Instead, I nervously walked into the Nelli Goletti theater and sat with my phone on the voice memos app and recorded the entire conversation from a middle seat in the auditorium.
I rushed home and spent hours trying to write the most advantageous and marvelous spectacle of journalism that Marist had ever seen. I spent the first night of the first weekend of college trying to be perfect.
I think about that moment a lot. I look back at that article and laugh; yeah, sure I think it was pretty bad (it kind of reads like Sparknotes synopsis of what happened that night rather than a news story), but the bottom line is that the effort was there. I tried my best to make a good impression and, more importantly, to contribute.
An honest effort is what this publication is all about. I received a LOT of edits that night from the staff, but I also received something else that transcended my career: confidence. Two weeks after raising my hand to take a story, I got published.
Hell yeah.
What I did not realize in that moment is why I gained that confidence: someone believed in me. An editorial staff of mostly juniors and seniors trusted me to get a job done, no matter how good it was, I could improve.
Fast forward to when I got asked by Jonathan Kinane and Ricardo Martinez-Paz–my close friends and mentors–to be on the editorial board my sophomore year. I was ecstatic; someone believed in my abilities, and all it took was an honest effort.
It’s not the sheer talent that empowers someone to grow; it’s the people. Even if I was not a solid writer yet, they saw I wanted to get better. Without that, who knows when I would have taken another story.
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I tell that story of my first year because it shows that Center Field can only function as a team effort. What I also gained that first year–and the most important aspect of all of this–is companionship. Because of the confidence they instilled in me, I felt compelled to speak my mind and converse with upperclassmen. Companionship drives this club (ooh I can say club now) to continue year after year and create lifelong relationships.
I’ve been lucky enough that Marist provided me with that support; I literally met my biggest supporter and my girlfriend Bianca of three and a half years on the second day of college, my greatest Marist memory and who kept me motivated to succeed during my time here at Center Field.
I shared two years of work with Luke Sassa, my co-editor-in-chief for the last two years. Luke and I did everything we set to accomplish during our tenure: increased our multimedia presence, expanded our coverage and continued to steer the ship in the way we knew how. He can tell you all about that in his Freditor.
When Luke graduated early to pursue the working world, I thought our Center Field journey was over–until we accomplished our crowning achievement: a kick-ass week of Super Bowl coverage. I’m thankful for Luke’s dedication to our working partnership and for being an amazing friend to lean on, and hopefully it’s not our last trip in the French Quarter.
I’d also like to thank Marley Pope who has undoubtedly crushed his roles as the men’s basketball beat reporter and managing editor. Marley joined later than I did and immediately rose to the occasion when he needed to step in. He’s covered for me more times than I can count and has asked for nothing in return. Wherever Marley goes, I know he’ll put in a ridiculous amount of effort and I’m proud of his success.
The two other seniors graduating on the board–Michael Burns and Aidan Lavin–two amazing writers who have given me their all. “Burnsy” wrote 45 articles since joining in February 2024; you couldn’t even tell he started late and he crushed two beats seamlessly. Lavin is amazing motivator, softball beat writer and generated countless ideas that are now staples of the site, such as “From the Foxes” and “The Lineup.”
To the returning editorial board: keep doing your thing. All of you are in that room for a reason, and I can’t wait to kick back and watch your success. Ben Leeds is going to undoubtedly crush the editor-in-chief role; his commitment to his own standards and his natural leadership is what makes me proudest to pass it off to him. Cara Lacey and Jaylen Rizzo–who have shared multimedia duties–now get unique roles of their own: Cara as the managing editor and Jaylen leading the multimedia front. It’s a big three that would rival the 2008 Celtics.
I’d also like to thank Leander Schaerlaeckens, our club advisor who pushed to be a better writer through his constructive feedback and thoughtful conversations (and his amazing dry humor). The rest of the sports communications staff–including Zach Arth, Andy Elrick and Chris Riviezzo–thank you for your constant support in everything we do.
One last big thank you to Marist Athletics, especially Mike Ferraro and Harrison Baker. Thank you for the working relationship we’ve developed over the past few years and for trusting that we treat our coverage with the upmost respect and care it deserves. To any coach or player I got to interview, thank you for your valuable time and letting us tell your stories properly.
I could go on and on about my experience here, but I don’t want to write another Marist Baseball deep dive. But I will tell you this: Center Field’s coverage is about storytelling: the good ones, the bad ones and everything in between. We tell the truth and we do it with high standards. The four years I’ve been here have seen dramatic changes for the student-athlete experiences, and I know this group will continue to push the boundaries in order to accurately share that experience through the press.
Well, shit. With that, my time here is done. It’s time for the next wave of students to go above and beyond what myself and the seniors created. It’s been an emotional week, to say the least, but I’m incredibly proud that I discovered my place at Marist. It’s been my greatest honor leading this group until the finish line.
-DA
