22-for-22

A look back at the top stories at The Victory Bell in 2022

I’ve never been one to get sentimental about the changing of the calendar.

I think that’s because the world I live in blurs the lines. I cover college basketball, where the season takes place over two calendar years. I watch college football, where the 2022 champion will be crowned in the 2023 College Football Playoff. I love the Oscars, where many of the films being honored were barely released before the event. I love the Grammy’s, where many of the songs being honored were released years before the event.

All that being said, 2022 was a special year in a lot of ways. A year ago at this time I was getting ready to take a giant leap of faith and launch The Victory Bell. It was no easy decision to walk away from traditional journalism, but the last year has been the most fulfilling in my professional life.

Sure, there have been plenty of ups-and-downs with The Victory Bell. Launching the site with a month left in a bad men’s basketball season might not have been the smartest move. The site got a boost when Mark LaBarbera announced his retirement four days after the launch. Page views spiked when I got the exclusive on the Valparaiso mascot announcement. That story received 5,319 views…and I garnered just three new paid subscriptions from people that read it.

The last year has been trial-and-error at every turn. Did I set the price too low? Did I set it too high? Should I sell advertising on the site? How much should I charge? These are questions that will carry over into 2023. Whatever those answers are, I’m excited at the future of The Victory Bell.

I launched the site on Feb. 4 and I wrote 154 stories this year. I launched The Victory Bell: The Podcast on Sept. 23 and recorded 10 episodes. This site has allowed me to write longer stories about deeper topics than I was ever able to hit on while working in traditional journalism. When trying to figure out what the best way was to look back at 2022, I settled on taking a look at 22 of the stories that really stood out to me from the last year. Here they are in chronological order.

22-for-22: A look back at The Victory Bell

No. 1 - The ball is tipped… (Feb. 4)

I launched the site from our family room at my childhood home in Milwaukee on Feb. 4. My hands shook as I hit publish on a site that was several months in the making. The site went live, I closed my laptop and went out to lunch with my dad. He, along with every other family member has been supportive of this venture. Their support means everything.

No. 2 - LaBarbera announces retirement (Feb. 8)

I don’t even remember how I got the heads up on this, but late the night before I received a tip that Mark LaBarbera was stepping down as Valparaiso’s athletic director. I spent hours working that night on a retrospective for a career that spanned 18 years at Valpo. I thoroughly enjoyed looking back through old interviews and stories for this one.

No. 3 - Emerging from the darkness (Feb. 16)

This profile on Emil Freese-Vilien is the reason why I launched The Victory Bell. Emil’s story needed to be told, so long as he was open to telling it, and there needed to be ample space to tell it. This story never would’ve seen the light of day in a printed newspaper.

No. 4 - Taylor makes most of one year with Valpo (Feb. 28)

I really wish Kevion Taylor would’ve had more than one season at Valpo. He was a joy to watch on the basketball court and even more so to talk to off the court. This story included a look back at all of the men’s basketball players at Valpo that spent just one year in the program. A fun look back at what might have been for a lot of players.

No. 5 - Who is Caitlin Morrison? (Mar. 10)

It’s unreal to me that of the 306 players that have played for the Valparaiso women’s basketball team, Caitlin Morrison has been teammates with 12.5 percent of them. That was just one of the interesting facts to come out of my research as I tried to find an answer to just who Caitlin Morrison is.

No. 6 - The NIT is anything but meaningless (Mar. 30)

The NIT has long stood for “Not In Tournament,” but that didn’t matter in 2016. I got a little vulnerable for this story as I told my tale of how the NIT run helped me get off the canvas after some personal trauma.

No. 7 - Venture of Flames (May 13)

When the Valparaiso Art-Psychology Building burned on Apr. 29, I had no idea just how much of a connection there was to basketball. The film “Venture of Faith” showcased the story behind the construction of the building and how a fictional basketball game played a large role. I have a love of history and research and this story remains a personal favorite.

No. 8 - Challenges await Valparaiso’s new athletic director (May 18)

Knowing Valparaiso was ready to hire its next athletic director, I wanted to put together a list of challenges that were going to be tops on the list. Facilities, Finances, NIL, Region relations and Mental Health Awareness were important on May 18 and they’re still important today.

No. 9 - Small introduced as Valpo’s new athletic director (May 19)

There were days in April and May when I tried like hell to get scoops on the Valparaiso AD search. There were also days in April and May when I threw my hands in the air and said “come what may.” The night before Small was introduced I was down to two candidates that I thought it could be. I did research on both, had stories ready to go on both, and was prepared for the announcement.

No. 10 - The night Valparaiso became No. 1 (June 17)

I had originally set out to do a Summer Vacation series where each week during the summer I’d focus on a different program at Valpo with a trio of stories on each. Life got in the way and the plan faded away. That didn’t stop me from knocking out a few of the sports, including this fun look back at a memorable night the bowling program.

No. 11 - Pitts finds her new “why” (June 22)

You can look at all over Valparaiso’s campus and it might be hard to find a more inspirational person than Ilysse Pitts. The women’s basketball player made a decision that she was coming back for a fifth-year, not for her, but for her daughter.

No. 12 - The Way Back (Jul. 15)

I’ll always wonder how things might have gone for the 2016-17 men’s basketball team had Keith Carter received an additional year of eligibility. Carter returned to campus in the summer as a member of Valparaiso’s TBT team and he shared his journey with me.

No. 13 - The CRU falls short in TBT first round (Jul. 17)

One of my favorite memories of the year came in Omaha. It was several hours after Valparaiso’s TBT entry fell in the first round. We all got together at a hotel bar and shared stories for hours. Valpo is special because of the people and this night showcased it all.

No. 14 - All-In: My Week at the World Series of Poker (Jul 19)

Not much needs to be said here. I lived out a dream I didn’t even know I had. I learned so much about competition from five days in the desert. Whether you like poker or not, I think there are some good lessons in this story. I know I learned a few.

No. 15 - Beacon and Blaze coming to Valparaiso (Aug. 15)

Love them? Hate them? Beacon and Blaze are here.

No. 16 - The jersey is everything (Aug. 18)

One of the joys of 2022 was spending time covering the Valparaiso women’s soccer team. Getting to know the players, getting to talk to John Marovich, getting to learn the beautiful game. This story on Kiley Dugan is a personal favorite. Her approach from the first game of the year to the last was inspirational in every way. She’s what Valpo is all about.

No. 17 - More than an athlete (Oct. 6)

Mental health is a topic that shouldn’t be ignored. Not when Division I athletes are taking their lives in droves. Some stories I write for fun. Others I write because I’ve got to create content. This was an important story.

No. 18 - Speech Play (Oct. 18)

In terms of silly stories, this was my favorite of the year. Do coaches actually give the speeches we see in Hollywood movies? Do they work? Who gives the best speeches on Valpo’s campus? These were the questions I set out to answer.

No. 19 - Valparaiso wins first Valley title (Oct. 24)

What a day at Brown Field. The Beacons needed to beat Indiana State in order to have a shot at the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title. Valpo also needed a miracle as last-place Illinois State needed to beat first-place Missouri State. I’ll never forget covering the emotions of this day.

No. 20 - Lookout Below: A musical look at Kobe King (Nov. 3)

I got into this business to write about athletes. It took me some time to realize it’s more fun to write about people. Kobe King does plenty of amazing things on the basketball court, but what he does off the court is far more interesting.

No. 21 - The Valpo Connection (Nov. 18)

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss covering high school athletics a little. Not the day-in, day-out grind, but when the ball was tipped at a high school gym, there’s no place I’d rather be. Going back to Valparaiso High School for this look at the connection between the VHS coaching staff and Valparaiso University was a fun marriage of my old job to The Victory Bell.

No. 22 - Tragedy, luck and a whole lot of waiting (Nov. 30)

Valparaiso ended the year with a major financial boost - getting $425,000 from New Mexico State to play a football game. The story of how that game came about is filled with plenty of twists and turns.

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Thanks to everyone for the support in 2022 and I can’t wait to bring you more stories in 2023. Have a Happy New Year. See you at the ARC tomorrow afternoon.

(Photo by Eliot Aust)