We have personnel news from the Nashville Sounds (Triple-A East), Stockton Ports (Low-A West), Fredericksburg Nationals (Low-A East), York Revolution (Atlantic League) and Worcester Bravehearts (Futures League).
In Nashville, Doug Scopel has been named Assistant General Manager in addition to his Vice President of Operations title. Danielle Gaw has been named Vice President of Corporate Partnerships and Taylor Fisher has been named Vice President of Ticket Sales and Service.
“I’m thrilled to announce a number of internal promotions and additions to our talented and hard-working staff,” said Sounds General Manager and Chief Operating Officer Adam English in a press release. “We’re proud to reward our staff with even more opportunity as they continue to excel in their respective areas. Our entire front office is busy preparing what will be a memorable 2022 season at First Horizon Park.”
Scopel is entering his 23rd year with the Sounds and was instrumental in his senior leadership role as the team transitioned general managers during and after the 2021 season. Scopel oversees all aspects of operations for the Sounds and First Horizon Park.
Gaw enters her ninth year with the Club and excels in all facets of corporate partnerships and activation at First Horizon Park. Additionally, Gaw oversees all sponsorship inventory and assists the sales and marketing staffs through contract creation and fulfillment.
Fisher is entering his sixth year with the Sounds and oversees the day-to-day operations and logistics of the 10-person tickets sales and services staff.
In addition to the executive management promotions, five different staff members were named to Director-level roles, including Katie Sigman as Director of Accounting, Wade Becker as Director of Retail, Abby Holman as Director of Marketing, Kevin Kurowski as Director of Ticket Sales and Kyle Hargrove as Director of Ticket Operations.
Sigman is entering her ninth year with the Sounds while Becker enters his seventh, Holman her fifth, Kurowski his fourth and Hargrove his fourth, respectively.
Other staff promotions and changes include Jon Brownfield as Business Development Manager, Travis Williams as Fan Services Manager and Jade Dugdale as Community Relations Manager.
Two new hires include Jay Evans and Kelsey Wisner as Account Executives under the direction of Fisher and Kurowski.
In Stockton, the Ports announced two new additions to the front-office staff: Community Relations Manager Lily Turner and Director of Ticket Sales Richard Haifley.
Turner joins the Ports from Memphis, TN where she was previously a site director for the YMCA. She graduated from the University of Tennessee in 2019 with a bachelor’s in Business Administration. Her past experience includes working with the University of Tennessee Athletic Department in Football Recruiting and the Tennessee Fund, which is the season ticket and donor support arm of athletics while a student at the University of Tennessee.
“I’m thrilled to get Lilly engaged in the Stockton community,” said General Manager Kieran McMahon via press release. “I’m excited for her to get to work in some awesome community initiatives.”
Haifley comes to the Ports from Salt Lake City, where he worked five seasons as Group Sales Manager for the Salt Lake City Stars (G-League) and Salt Lake Bees. A native Texan, and a graduate of Stephen F. Austin State University, Richard also served as Public Address Announcer for University of Utah, Salt Lake Community College, and the Salt Lake City Stars.
In Fredericksburg, Adam Flock is new Community Relations Manager and Brian Lehman new Ticket Sales Account Executive for the FredNats. Long-time franchise employee Rich Crosslin has been promoted to Box Office Manager for the organization.
Flock, originally from Syracuse, New York, recently completed 4 years of service in the United States Marine Corps. Adam also played the trumpet for the Marine Corps Band and taught brass instrumental lessons to students in the Stafford and Fredericksburg areas. Flock previously worked for the FredNats in 2021 for their promotional team before joining the organization in a full-time capacity.
Lehman, graduated from East Tennessee University with a degree in Sports Management. Familiar with the world of Minor League Baseball, Brian previously worked for the Elizabethton River Riders as a Promotions and Community Relations Intern.
Crosslin graduated with his bachelor’s degree in Sports Management from James Madison University before joining the Potomac Nationals in Woodbridge, Virginia as a intern and then Ticket Operations Coordinator. Crosslin was brought on in a full-time role when the team moved to Fredericksburg, and served as a Ticket Sales Account Representative during the FredNats’ inaugural season before being promoted to Box Office Manager this fall.
In York, former Client Services interns Kenton Meckley and Morgan Haase have been promoted to full-time positions on the team’s staff. Both joined the Revolution before the 2021 season and helped coordinate and execute client advertising and groups and hospitality event logistics.
Meckley has been named a full-time sales account executive with the team. Selling group tickets, sponsorship opportunities, and advertising, he will match local businesses and groups with solutions to reward and entertain employees and group members and help area businesses promote their products and services to the York community. A York County native, Meckley is a 2021 graduate of Kutztown University of Pennsylvania and earned a bachelor’s degree in Sports Management.
Haase has stepped into the newly created role of Party and Events Sales Coordinator. She will work with parties, groups, and families to plan and execute parties, meetings, and events of all types at PeoplesBank Park, including use of the 1741 Club presented by UPMC, one of the ballpark’s several year-round hospitality spaces. Haase earned her bachelor’s degree in Sport Management with a minor in Marketing from the University of West Georgia. Haase hails from Atlanta.
Sarah Leo has joined the team as Director of Client Services, managing fulfillment of contracts between the Revolution and its sponsors and advertisers. Originally from Pittsburgh, she earned her associate’s degree in Hospitality & Travel Management from the Bradford School of Business in Pittsburgh.
Brianna Klinger has been named the Revolution’s Group Theme Event Coordinator. In the newly created position, she’ll work with the team’s Marketing department to craft the elements of themed Revolution games created for or to attract groups in the area. Klinger comes to the Revs after working for the Nashville Sounds’ Promotions department. She previously worked in New York City with The Heisman Trophy Trust, assisting with operations and selling annual journal ads while earning her master’s degree in Sports Business from New York University. A native of New Paltz, New York, she earned her bachelor’s degree in Sports Management from SUNY Brockport.
Casey Nelson has been named an account executive and is responsible for sales of group tickets, sponsorship opportunities, and advertising. She joins Meckley in matching local businesses and groups with team-building and promotional solutions. Nelson is from Stewartstown, Pennsylvania, and earned a bachelor’s degree in Sports Management and a minor in Coaching and Administration from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania this past spring. She served as an equipment office intern with Villanova University and coached the Kennard-Dale High School Girls Soccer team this fall.
In Worcester, Nate Gonelli has been promoted to Assistant General Manager of the Bravehearts. Originally from Baldwinville, MA, Gonelli joined the Bravehearts in 2017 after graduating from Franklin Pierce University. He moved up the ranks in Worcester, starting as a Group Experience Coordinator before being promoted to Director of Sales in 2019.
Gonelli’s passion for working in sports showed early in his college days. In his senior year, he became the first-ever Game Day Operations Intern for Franklin Pierce University, paving the way for other sport-management hopefuls to gain quality experience before obtaining their degree. While in college, Gonelli also worked in the customer service industry, working to combine his people skills with his knowledge of sports management to create a quality environment for future fans.
“In this industry, there is nothing more fulfilling than seeing a co-worker rise through the ranks and become a leader,” said Bravehearts General Manager Dave Peterson in a press release. “Nate Gonelli embodies the spirit, work-ethic, and attention-to-detail that has been synonymous with the Bravehearts’ brand. He has earned every bit of this promotion, and it’s going to be exciting to work with him as a leader of this franchise as we prep for the most important season in the history of the team.”
Along with Gonelli’s promotion, the Bravehearts have promoted former Team Store Manager Carter Bemis to Merchandising Director. Bemis will run the Bravehearts Holiday pop-up shop located at the Auburn Mall for the month of December.