Tired of flipping to the back page for your WHS sports news? This school year, WHS launched Hi’s Eye Sports, a student-run online sports site that covers WHS athletics. The back page of Hi’s Eye will now pay tribute to Iris, no longer making readers wait for their entertainment news.

The new staff is composed of seniors enrolled in a brand-new sports journalism course, providing an alternative to Hi’s Eye and Optic for third-year journalism students.

Sports journalism is different from its counterparts through both the style of writing and class structure. Editor-in-Chief Michael Liebermann said, “Hi’s Eye and Optic have set deadlines and a lot more time to
work on [articles], so in comparison, [Hi’s Eye Sports is] very fast-paced.”

In addition to writing in a short-form style, social media plays a big role in the course’s public outreach initiative. College Commitment Manager Sutton Factor said, “We use Twitter to tweet right away when game scores and college recruitments are announced. Because we post more frequently than Hi’s Eye, we use [Twitter] to tell people when we post [on our website].”

With Westfield’s sports stories finding a new home on hiseyesports.org, students and community members can stay updated on Blue Devil sports. It also gives journalists a new and exciting opportunity at WHS. Factor said, “As an athlete, I follow sports pretty regularly and I love to attend sports games, so Hi’s Eye Sports [gives me the] opportunity to also expand my journalism skills. I think it’s fun to be a part of something new, and I like being part of the first group to start Hi’s Eye Sports.”

Like Factor, staff member Lucas Hubner was intrigued by the prospect of participating in the publication’s inaugural year. Hubner said, “I’m super excited to be a part of the first year of Hi’s Eye Sports. It’s really cool to create something and to leave our own personal stamp on it.”

In addition to enhancing the journalism curriculum, the Hi’s Eye Sports website contains useful resources for the sports-enthused students. Athletic Director Sandy Mamary said, “Especially in the winter with all three sports in the gym, it’s going to be packed. [We’re] going to have a lot more sold out games. I think about last year, how many games I had sold out. Promoting information on upcoming games hopefully will push students to buy their tickets online.”

As this is only its third week online, Hi’s Eye Sports has many surprises in store for the future. Right now, the sports journalists are busy tweeting live games, maintaining the schedule and results of all sports teams, building rosters on the site and publishing sports features and game recaps daily. For more information, visit hiseyesports.org and @hiseyesports on Twitter.