ATLANTA, March 6,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- To complement National Women's
Soccer League (NWSL) doubleheaders on Saturday nights on ION,
Scripps Sports will launch weekly NWSL on ION Studio Shows starting
March 16, including:
- 30-minute pre-match shows.
- Halftime shows.
- Wrap-up/preview shows (Match Break) in between matches.
- Post-match shows (depending on the schedule).
These are the first-ever weekly studio shows dedicated to the
NWSL by any network and will be led by Nicole Denne, a veteran producer and former
Division I college soccer player.
The studio shows will review highlights from recent matches,
spotlight upcoming matches on ION and feature in-depth stories from
around the league. Halftime shows will break down matches and
provide insights from the studio host and analysts.
The season starts Saturday, March
16 with one match on ION: The Utah Royals vs. Chicago
Red Stars (7:30 p.m. ET). The pre-match show will start at
7 p.m. Doubleheaders start the
following week, March 23.
Viewers can find access to ION in their
areas or via streaming platforms
by visiting https://ionnwsl.com/
Talent
NWSL on ION Studio Shows will originate from Atlanta. The
Scripps Sports team:
- Lisa Carlin, host – She
serves as a host and analyst for CBS Sports soccer coverage on
"Attacking Third," which she helped launch in 2021, covering the
NWSL, the U.S. Women's National team and international women's
soccer. Carlin has also provided commentary for NWSL matches the
last four seasons and previously enjoyed announcing stints with
Major League Soccer, FOX Sports, ESPN and more. Carlin won two Big
East championships at Marquette
University.
- Darian Jenkins, analyst –
She is currently serving as a CBS Sports analyst on "Attacking
Third," "Morning Footy" and "Box to Box" on the Golazo Network
covering soccer globally. Jenkins played professionally in
France and Australia and with the North Carolina Courage,
OL Reign, Orlando Pride and Kansas
City in the NWSL. She won an NWSL championship in 2018 with
North Carolina. She is a former chief
of staff for Gotham FC. Jenkins also won a national championship in
college with the UCLA Bruins.
- Jessica McDonald, analyst
– She played 12 years in the NWSL and two seasons in Australia. McDonald won a World Cup title in
2019 with the USWNT. She won three NWSL championships, three NWSL
Shields and a SheBelieves Cup. McDonald was NWSL Championship MVP
in 2018. She is tied as the league's all-time assist leader. She
won two NCAA titles with North
Carolina.
- Nicole Denne, executive
producer – She has been serving as senior director of national
news for Scripps. She is a former
executive producer at KNBC in Los
Angeles. Denne played collegiate soccer at Brigham Young University.
Scripps Sports and the NWSL will co-produce matches with two
distinct Scripps Sports NWSL match broadcast teams.
Team 1:
- JP Dellacamera, play-by-play – He has done play-by-play
for 17 World Cups (men's and women's), three Olympic tournaments
(men's and women's) and the Philadelphia Union of MLS for 13
seasons. Dellacamera has also done hockey and basketball
play-by-play at pro and collegiate levels. In 2022, he won the Clay
Berling Media Career of Excellence Award.
- Jill Loyden, analyst –
She is in her third year as an NWSL analyst and ninth year as
analyst for ESPN college soccer. The former U.S. Women's National
Team goalkeeper spent seven years playing professionally in the
NWSL and Women's Professional Soccer league. She was Gotham FC's
goalkeeper coach in 2016 and 2017.
- Tom Piero, producer – The
veteran producer/director has worked on MLS matches for Apple+,
NWSL matches for Paramount+ and Orlando City SC matches for Fox 35
Plus in Orlando. Piero has also produced for Bally Sports, Cox Sports TV, ESPN Wide World of
Sports, the Sun Belt Network and more.
- Gage Tilotsen, director – He has been directing USL,
NWSL and MLS matches since 2017 across multiple networks, including
Fox, FS1, ESPN, ESPN2 and CBS Sports Network. In 2023, he directed
the MLS Cup on Fox, the MLS Next Pro Cup on Apple, the USL
Championship final on ESPN2 and NWSL regular-season and playoff
shows.
Team 2:
- Maura Sheridan,
play-by-play – She is in her third year as an NWSL play-by-play
announcer. Sheridan has been behind the mic for CONCACAF World Cup
qualifiers, U.S. Open Cup and USL Championship matches. She has
also called college softball and basketball on ESPN.
- Jordan Angeli, analyst –
She has served as an analyst for CBS Sports Golazo Network's
"Attacking Third" show and as the face of Apple content for the
Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. She spent three years as
lead analyst for MLS club Columbus
Crew. Angeli played for the Boston Breakers, Western New
York Flash and the Washington Spirit.
- Mackenzie Pearce,
producer – She is a senior producer for NEP Group, producing
events yearly across ESPN, CBS and FOX for a variety of soccer
leagues, including MLS, NWSL, USL and NCAA. Her recent highlights
include producing the 2023 men's and women's ACC college soccer
championships on ESPN, the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup final, as well
as being a member of the production teams for the MLS Cup on FOX
and the WNBA Commissioner's Cup on Amazon Prime.
- Art Izquierdo, director –
He has been directing and producing soccer for 30+ years, including
MLS, Concacaf and Gold Cup competitions. Izquierdo has been a
director for Orlando City FC, MLS on Apple TV and Telemundo
Deportes.
"We made a commitment to the NWSL, the teams, players and fans,"
said Quinn Pacini, vice president of
broadcast operations for Scripps Sports. "With that in mind, we've
assembled a first-class team of soccer minds, voices and experts to
showcase our Saturday night NWSL franchise. It's a deep, talented,
versatile group that will entertain and inform fans all
season."
Branding / marketing
Scripps Sports has unveiled branding for its NWSL on ION
programming. Scripps partnered with
industry-leading design agency Drive Studio on the creative for
matches and studio shows.
Promotional assets, which will run throughout the season across
television, social, digital and paid media, were developed in
partnership with Gameday Creative and STN Digital.
ION schedule
Scripps Sports is a partner in the landmark NWSL distribution
agreement announced in November that involves Scripps Sports/ION,
CBS/Paramount, ESPN and Prime Video. Scripps Sports will air 50 of
118 matches to be featured on national television platforms during
the season – the most of any partner. ION is owned by The E.W.
Scripps Company (Nasdaq: SSP). The matches:
March 16: Utah vs, Chicago
(7:30 p.m. ET)
March 23: Washington vs. Bay (7:30
p.m. ET), San Diego vs. Kansas
City (10 p.m. ET)
March 30: Portland vs. Louisville
(7:30 p.m. ET), Bay vs. Houston
(10 p.m. ET)
April 13: Louisville vs. San
Diego (7:30 p.m. ET),
Chicago vs. Angel City (10 p.m. ET)
April 20: Kansas City vs. Bay
(7:30 p.m. ET), Portland vs. Houston (10
p.m. ET)
April 27: Chicago vs. Portland
(7:30 p.m. ET), San Diego vs. Bay (10 p.m.
ET)
May 4: NJ/NY vs. North Carolina (7:30 p.m.
ET), Portland vs. Washington (10 p.m.
ET)
May 11: Orlando vs. Bay (7:30 p.m. ET), Portland vs. Seattle
(10 p.m. ET)
May 12 (Sunday): San Diego vs. Gotham (7:30
p.m. ET)
May 18: Washington vs. Angel City (7:30 p.m. ET), Kansas City vs. Louisville (10 p.m.
ET)
May 25: Chicago vs. Louisville
(7:30 p.m. ET), Utah vs. Kansas City (10
p.m. ET)
June 8: Utah vs. Washington
(7:30 p.m. ET), Portland vs. North
Carolina (10 p.m. ET)
June 15: Washington vs. San
Diego (7:30 p.m. ET), Houston
vs. Angel City (9:30 p.m. ET)
• Note: No studio show in between
matches
June 22: Houston
vs. San Diego (7:30 p.m. ET), Bay vs. Angel City (10 p.m. ET)
June 29: Washington vs. North
Carolina (7:30 p.m. ET),
Utah vs. Portland (10 p.m.
ET)
July 6: Kansas City vs. Orlando
(7:30 p.m. ET), Angel City vs. NJ/NY
(10 p.m. ET)
Aug. 24: Louisville vs. Chicago
(7:30 p.m. ET)
Aug. 31: Louisville vs. Seattle
(7:30 p.m. ET), Houston vs.
Utah (9:30 p.m.
ET)
• Note: No studio show in between
matches
Sept. 7: Kansas
City vs. Utah (7:30 p.m. ET), Bay at Louisville (10 p.m.
ET)
Sept. 14: Louisville vs. Angel City (7:30 p.m. ET), Utah
vs. San Diego (10 p.m. ET)
Sept. 21: Louisville vs. North
Carolina (7:30 p.m. ET),
Chicago vs. San
Diego (9:30 p.m. ET)
• Note: No studio show in between
matches
Sept. 28: Orlando
vs. Houston (7:30 p.m. ET),
San Diego vs. Portland (10 p.m.
ET)
Oct. 5: NJ/NY at Bay (7:30 p.m. ET), Portland vs. Utah
(10 p.m. ET)
Oct. 12: North
Carolina vs. Angel City (7:30 p.m.
ET), Bay vs. Kansas City (10 p.m.
ET)
Oct. 19: Louisville vs. Portland
(7:30 p.m. ET), Bay vs. North Carolina (10 p.m.
ET)
Nov. 2: Orlando vs. Seattle (5 p.m. ET),
North Carolina vs. Washington (7:30 p.m.
ET), Houston vs. Bay (9:30 p.m.
ET)
• Note: No studio show after the
second match
Media
contacts:
|
Scripps – Michael
Perry, (513) 259-4718, michael.perry@scripps.com
|
|
NWSL – Kirsten
Brierley, (631) 617-7093, kbrierley@nwslsoccer.com
|
About Scripps Sports
Scripps Sports serves
professional and college sports leagues, conferences and teams with
local market depth and national broadcast reach of up to 100% of TV
households. Scripps Sports currently has partnerships with the
Women's National Basketball Association, the National Women's
Soccer League, the National Hockey League's Stanley Cup champion
Vegas Golden Knights and NHL's Arizona Coyotes, and the NCAA's Big
Sky Conference in college football. Scripps Sports is a division of
The E.W. Scripps Company (NASDAQ: SSP), a Fortune 100 American
media company focused on creating a better-informed world.
About the NWSL
The National Women's Soccer League is
the premier women's professional soccer league in the world
featuring national team players from around the globe. The clubs
are Angel City FC, Bay FC, Boston, Chicago Red Stars, Houston Dash, Kansas City Current, NJ/NY Gotham
FC, North Carolina Courage, Seattle Reign FC, Orlando Pride, Portland Thorns FC, Racing
Louisville FC, San Diego Wave FC, Utah Royals FC, and Washington
Spirit.
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SOURCE The E.W. Scripps Company