Meet Chase Gemes, the new high school sports reporter for the Journal & Courier

To think back four years ago, when I first decided I wanted to pursue a career in journalism — and sports journalism, for that matter — I could not have predicted the fulfillment and opportunities it has given me.

Naturally, sports have been a big part of my life from the beginning. My first word as a baby was “so” — not just because it was easy to get me to say, but because it was the name of the former St. Louis Cardinals outfielder So Taguchi, who played for a team that I was raised loving (thanks Mom and Dad!). I know that said team probably isn’t popular around the Lafayette area, but please give me some grace.

At the start, my love for sports was on the field, playing baseball, soccer and basketball. As I grew up and began high school, I loved it in a different way. I started to keep closer track of sports leagues and debating numerous topics with my friends, which resulted in a couple of moderately successful Instagram accounts that I frequently posted on. But that was just the groundwork for what I ultimately decided to do.

Choosing the Missouri School of Journalism wasn’t very difficult. I had always excelled in reading and writing far more than I did in math and science, and I sure wrote a lot. Even in fifth grade, I spent some of my free time typing up mini biographies of a variety of people, from U.S. presidents to Larry Bird to Robert Downey Jr.

I didn’t have a whole lot of journalism experience before college, but the stories I wrote for my high school paper showed me I not only could do it, but that I really, really enjoyed it. And with home being only two hours away from one of the most renowned journalism schools in the country, it was a no-brainer for me.

Once my freshman year kicked off, I was determined to get as much experience as possible. The sport and team I was most eager to start covering was Missouri men’s basketball, which I was assigned to cover for the school’s student newspaper, The Maneater, that first semester. I was thrilled to get to do that so quickly into college, and covering events later on like the football team’s Cotton Bowl win in 2023 and the 2025 NCAA Tournament were never not a little shell-shocking to be at.

But beyond the awe that sports reporting can sometimes provide, what kept me so passionate about pursuing journalism was telling the stories of the people off the field. Whether it’s talking to athletes about their recovery from injuries, overcoming struggles or simply being in the same locker room as them after a big win or tough loss, those were the moments when I’ve felt most connected to them and fueled to write.

That rang true most clearly with two stories I wrote revisiting Mizzou football’s boycott in 2015 earlier this year for the Columbia Missourian, which took months of reporting, writing and editing to put together. The entire process taught me a lot, and I felt honored to have the trust of several members of the team to put it together and shed a light on them over a decade later. I believe athletes have so much to tell and teach us, and it’s a privilege for me to have that responsibility to showcase it with this new role.

I am eager to get settled in Lafayette and begin telling the stories of a rich, passionate high school sports area. I hope to earn your trust with the stories I write and that I can help bring exposure to the talented athletes throughout the community. I still have lots to learn, but this will be a great place and paper to keep growing.

I may be a Missourian at heart, but I’m ready to see what Indiana has to offer.

If you have any story ideas for me right off the bat or would like to connect, I’d love to hear from you. You can reach me anytime at [email protected] . I'll be remote until the end of August, but that won't stop me from publishing great content during the early stages of fall sports season. I can't wait to meet everyone in person starting in September!

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Meet Chase Gemes, the new high school sports reporter for the Journal & Courier

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