Since October 2000, CBS-58 sports anchor/reporter Trenni Kusnierek has been a fresh face on the local television sports scene. In a male-dominated profession, her reporting has brought a new flavor to a market that, until her arrival, had only one other female sports reporter.
Well, Jessie Garcia, you'll soon be -- once again -- the only female sports reporter on Milwaukee TV as CBS's Kusnierek is leaving the station for FOX Sports Net in Pittsburgh. Her last day on the air is October 21, and she starts her new gig November 1.
Kusnierek says she'll miss Milwaukee.
"I like the city a lot. The summers are great, and obviously I'll miss my friends and family. And, of course I'll miss (hanging out) at Flannery's."
Her move won't change her loyalty to Milwaukee sports, either. Says Kusnierek, "I'll always be a Milwaukee sports fan. I'm not leaving because I don't like Milwaukee. I'm excited to move somewhere different, though. It's a great opportunity."
Kusnierek grew up on a steady diet of Milwaukee sports and television in Wind Lake and went to college at Marquette University. But she is now spreading her sports wings and flying the CBS-58 coup for the greener -- as well as more regional and potentially national -- pastures of FOX Sports Net.
She'll cover the Penguins and Steelers as a sideline reporter and will also do pre and post game work. It's a great opportunity since she'll also get additional reporting experience doing the Pittsburgh Sports Report and St. Louis Sports Report (which is taped at FOX Sports in Pittsburgh). Ultimately, Kusnierek says she is working toward more national exposure and her dream of doing network sideline coverage on ESPN or ABC (a la Melissa Stark).
{INSERT_RELATED}Covering Milwaukee sports was a good experience for Kusnierek, but she would also like to see changes in the way teams, especially the Brewers, are run here in town.
"They have a lot to work on," says Kusnierek. "They have a great new ballpark, now they need a good baseball team, and it's going to take money to field a competitive team. I'm a huge Brewers fan, but they need a more competitive team."
In her time here, Kusnierek had the opportunity to cover some big-time events, but the NBA Eastern Conference Finals between the Bucks and the 76ers was the best.
"(It was) a huge event on a huge stage. It was very fun, even the away games. The All Star Game would rank a close second."
Kusnierek says her family still lives in Milwaukee, so she'll be back for regular visits. No word from CBS58 on who will be her replacement.
A life-long and passionate community leader and Milwaukeean, Jeff Sherman is a co-founder of OnMilwaukee.
He grew up in Wauwatosa and graduated from Marquette University, as a Warrior. He holds an MBA from Cardinal Stritch University, and is the founding president of Young Professionals of Milwaukee (YPM)/Fuel Milwaukee.
Early in his career, Sherman was one of youngest members of the Greater Milwaukee Committee, and currently is involved in numerous civic and community groups - including board positions at The Wisconsin Center District, Wisconsin Club and Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. He's honored to have been named to The Business Journal's "30 under 30" and Milwaukee Magazine's "35 under 35" lists.
He owns a condo in Downtown and lives in greater Milwaukee with his wife Stephanie, his son, Jake, and daughter Pierce. He's a political, music, sports and news junkie and thinks, for what it's worth, that all new movies should be released in theaters, on demand, online and on DVD simultaneously.
He also thinks you should read OnMilwaukee each and every day.
