The moment Alexa Chiarelli stepped foot onto the College of Charleston campus, it seems she has been running circles (literally) around us all, as she races in all different directions to get to class, club meetings, track & field practice, and every other activity she dabbles in. This jersey girl is a go-getter, who has an unwavering smile and enough boundless enthusiasm to materialize all her goals into reality. She’s not just studying for school, she’s putting in the hard work to get those acing grades. She’s not just training on the track, she’s sprinting for the win. She’s not just dreaming of being the next Erin Andrews, she’s harnessing the finesse that makes these famed sports reporters so great. She is putting to work all those good ole exercise endorphins, channeling all that built up motivation, and spreading all that positivity out into the world. Alexa is surely proving to us that she’s not running out of speed anytime soon. So keep an eye out as she sprints her way to the top.
Name: Alexa Chiarelli
Year: Junior
Major/Minor: Communication/Hospitality
Hometown: Marlton, NJ
Campus Involvement: Student-Athlete, Athletic Communication Department Intern (Game day Operations Employee), Fitness Instructor for Campus Rec, and Member of the Fellowship of Student Athletes
Being that you are a Jersey girl, what sent you all the way down to the Carolina Coast for the College of Charleston?
Just like they all start out… “We were down here in this beautiful city vacationing” haha. But really, I was a little out there and applied to about 10 colleges (I guess I just really like having options). When I saw Charleston for the first time, it had to go on the list. I have always been drawn to the south because my mother is from here and my sister attended the University of Alabama. But the way the cookie crumbled, it came down to a handful, and CofC was one of them. I knew I was going to love the campus but I just had to make sure the Communication department was what I was looking for. After attending Students-Accepted weekend and speaking to upperclassmen, I made my decision to call the College of Charleston my home.
What led you to try out for the track team here at CofC?
I have been involved with sports all my life. After dabbling in just about every sport, I fell in love with Field Hockey in 4th grade and continued playing until my junior year of high school. I was that one girl who got excited at the end of practice when my coach (who happened to be my father) said “Meet me on the 50 yard line”…I knew this meant it was time for sprints. So when the fall season was over in high school, I knew I had to fill my time with something during the winter and spring seasons. And being that I loved to run, I found myself on the track team. When high school ended, I had enough. I wanted nothing to do with the sport and I simply just needed a break; time away from the track. After spending all of freshman year creating my own workouts, eventually joining the running club, I felt more of a coach than an athlete. And boy did I miss being an athlete. I remember the day so well. I was sitting in the library trying to prepare for finals (my ticket to summer) & all of a sudden I got so worked up. I went outside and called my dad, crying. I explained how much I missed the sport and being an athlete. I wanted back in. My dad told me to contact the coach right away. First, I called a former teammate and asked her how she managed it all. With how stressed I was freshman year, I couldn’t imagine adding D1 athletics to it all. But she gave me great advice, so I went back inside and emailed the head coach. Within the next 3 days, a few phone calls and a meeting with the assistant coach, I was told I would be put on the summer workout schedule and that I would be training with the girls in the fall. That fire inside of me never went out. Everyday I am grateful for the opportunity I have been given and not a second goes by that I take being on CofC’s track & field team for granted. As cliché as it sounds, becoming a student-athlete has completely changed my life.
I understand you want to be a sports reporter. What steered you into choosing this for your future career? Have sports always been a big part of your life?
It started out that I wanted to be a news anchor, until one day I was sitting in the dining hall watching sports center while eating my cereal before class. That’s when it hit me. I called up my dad and told him my revelation. “Of course this is what I want to do! Why haven’t I been able to see this?!” Sports are such a huge part of my life that I feel as though I can see it from a different point of view than most. If I were to become a sports reporter, I wouldn’t be in it for the mere fact that I get to be around sports 24/7. I am one who wants to get the inside details. What really makes a team click? What are the athlete’s individual stories (aka: what got them to the point they are at now? What has shaped their life? What does it really mean to be a team member and how do they keep that focus in their life? Etc. etc.) This is what led me to becoming an intern for the athletic communication department.
As time went on and I became more involved in game day operations, I see all that truly goes into the game. I also now “study” sports reporters on TV during those 15 seconds with the coach. I have come to personally believe that being a sports reporter takes a special talent. I have decided that I want to be able to develop news talent before I tackle the sports side. And as the years progress and I can develop my skill, all my work will be done with my eyes fixed on the goal of being a sports reporter.
Have you been given any opportunities to gain first hand experience in the world of sports reporting thus far?
Not necessarily sports reporting. In high school I was a news anchor, stand up reporter, interviewer, producer, etc. for all the “news” packages we would put together each week. So I have a very strong foundation in broadcast media, just not the sports-reporting side of things. Like I said though, I don’t just watch Sportscenter anymore, I study it. However I have gotten to dip my toes into the world of sports with the internship I had over the summer with our professional soccer team out on Daniel Island, The Charleston Battery. Also, I am already making strides to intern with a local news station next summer and a position may be in the works for me as a sideline reporter for the College of Charleston.
Would you rather tackle those hard football questions, chat courtside with the basketball players, or hit a home run in baseball sports reporting?
Definitely chat courtside. Like I mentioned before, I believe there is so much to an athlete off the court than on. It is not just about talent. It is about core values, past history, philosophies- what makes them tick and how that carries over into being a team-member. Everyone has a story. And I believe that reflects in athletic performance. To me, the story is more about team dynamic and personal traits that make up a team or an individual athlete…rather than their talent alone. And that is something to report on.
Give us a little preview of your reporting skills and tell me your prediction for our CofC track and field team this upcoming season. Do you think this year’s team is going to be running sprints around the other schools?
With only a week and a half of preseason under our belts, I can already see the fire our team has this year. With a lot of new faces, my teammates and I have shown up to practice ready to get work done. And that we have. I pride our team in family-dynamic. It is easy for teams to call themselves “family” but I believe our team truly is. Whenever we are nervous for a workout, we just say to each other, “we will get through this together…we got this.” With that encouragement, I feel like I can take on any workout thrown our way. If we can keep that up and always remember why we love our sport, our drive will come out and show in great performances.
With track and working for our schools gym, it’s obvious fitness is a core part of your life. What’s some good advice you could give to your fellow Cougars on how to find time for some much needed exercise?
It is the easiest thing to think there is no time to workout. Trust me. I know how hard it is to fit everything into one day while still making it out with a stunning GPA. But honestly, if I was to give one piece of advice it is this: working out will relieve stress. Whether it is 30 minutes of running, or 2 hours pumping iron, you will feel like a new person ready to take on the world when it is all said and done. I cannot tell you how many practices I have shown up to stressed out because of school or simply in a bad mood that day. By the time we get back on that van after an afternoon of practice, I am smiling ear-to-ear and laughing with my teammates (something that I thought was impossible just 3 hours before). When you workout, something called endorphins gets released in your body. When released, endorphins trigger positive feelings in the body. So take that hour of a study break and workout. You will be surprised when those amazing ideas start to flow when you sit back down to write a paper.
You seem to be scoring big both on and off the track since you’ve landed at the College of Charleston your freshmen year. How do you find the energy and motivation to excel in school, clubs, and sports?
Stay as positive as you can! My days are so long and if I let myself think for a minute that I am tired or I want to give up, I will crash. I just have to keep pushing through and remind myself that everything I do is for a purpose. Keep my eyes fixed ahead on success and just keep doing what I can to achieve that. When I became an athlete, the phrase “it all will get done” never proved to be so true. I never believed in that phrase my freshman year. And now I can’t go a day without saying it 500 times! Everything DOES gets done, as long as you take a deep breath, stay organized, and keep pushing!
Last question, in your free time what do you enjoy doing most in this beautiful city of Charleston?
As cliché as it is, walks down to the Battery or spending time on the Waterfront Pier are my favorite things to do when trying to escape my hectic life. Just seeing the water clears my mind and gives me that sense of peace I can’t find on busy King Street. It clears my mind and gives me a chance to reflect on how beautiful our city, and our world truly is. God has put everything on this Earth for our enjoyment, and I need to make sure I take time out to reflect and be thankful for that.
If any of you are looking to rev up those endorphins at the gym, check out Alexa’s Cougar Core class on Tues. and Thurs. from 6:45-715 and Sundays from 5-5:45 at the George Street Fitness Center!