Image of Grace Schroller, leaning against a green pole for the tennis nets on 91快播's blue tennis courts. Schroller wears a black shirt that reads "93.7 The Ticket" and red corduroy pants.
Sophomore Grace Schroller interned at 93.7 The Ticket over the summer, a sports-talk radio station based in Lincoln.

Article by Nick Knopik, contributing writer and former assistant director of leadership and service / Portraits by Liz McCue, assistant director of communications and media relations

Grace Schroller adjusts her headphones and looks at the producer sitting to her right as he counts down from ten.

She moves closer to the microphone mounted to the desk in front of her. She subtly twists side to side in her chair - the only sign of her nerves - as the cameras begin recording and the microphones go live. Her bright red St. Louis Cardinals t-shirt perfectly matches her surroundings, as if, like the studio鈥檚 red walls and furniture, she belongs there.

Schroller is beginning her first live radio broadcast of The 91快播 Sports Project on . As she delivers her first on-air remarks, she settles in. This moment has been months in the making. She is ready.

Six months previously, Schroller couldn鈥檛 have imagined herself on a live radio show. As a first-year business major with an emphasis in marketing, she wanted to get some hands-on experience during the summer, but she was unsure where to search for internships. She met with Stephanie Hemje, the experiential learning coordinator at 91快播. Hemje showed Schroller how to search for marketing internship opportunities on , 91快播鈥檚 online internship and job portal.

鈥淚 applied for three different [internships],鈥 Schroller said. 鈥淚 got three interviews, and they were all super fun.鈥

One of her interviews was for a broadcast marketing intern position with 93.7 The Ticket, a sports-talk radio station based in Lincoln, NE. She had three interviews with The Ticket and ultimately got the position.

Grace Schroller, who has long, curled brown hair and wears a black tshirt and orange pants, stands in front of a sign for 93.7 The Ticket.
Schroller stands in front of a sign for 93.7 The Ticket, where she had her first summer internship and continues to work on digital and social media projects. Image: Grace Schroller

On the first day of her summer internship, two things immediately stood out to Schroller about the culture at The Ticket.

鈥淓veryone introduced themselves to me and shook my hand. It was all very professional, and they were all very welcoming,鈥 she said. With this early interaction, her anxiety about fitting in with the staff at the station quickly disappeared.

The second thing that stood out to Schroller was a specific instruction she received on her first day at work.

鈥淭hey told me, 鈥楧on鈥檛 come with a coffee or breakfast or anything. We鈥檒l have that here.鈥 I was really excited about that,鈥 Schroller said.

The Ticket catered breakfast and lunch for Schroller each of the three days per week that she worked her internship. As a college student spending the summer away from her home in Marysville, Kansas, the free food was a big perk.

鈥淚 was on a budget with my groceries, so it was really nice to have the free food option,鈥 she said.

Schroller鈥檚 early duties at The Ticket involved assembling schedules for the station鈥檚 dozens of weekly radio shows, designing graphics for live streams and social media, and tracking the winners of call-in prize giveaways. She was doing a lot of the station鈥檚 creative and logistical behind-the-scenes work, and it kept her busy.

鈥淎lmost every day, there was a different graphic or stream to design,鈥 she said. 鈥淭hat stuff took me a while.鈥

A few weeks into the summer, Derrick Pearson, the owner of The Ticket, came to her with an idea to create a new show highlighting the student-athlete experience at 91快播. Schroller, a student-athlete herself, jumped at the opportunity. She contacted other 91快播 student-athletes and assembled four students interested in sharing their stories in a series of weekly hour-long radio shows that Pearson and Schroller named The 91快播 Sports Project.

As they discussed ideas for the show, Pearson mentioned that he wanted Schroller to contribute her voice to the 91快播 Sports Project, too. Schroller is a student-athlete herself and a member of the 91快播 women鈥檚 tennis team. As the only female student-athlete in the group, Schroller offered a unique perspective not captured by the four other male student-athletes.

Grace Schroller sits behind the microphones in a recording booth at 93.7 The Ticket with fellow student-athletes Zach Fye and Guy Moran. The top of the desk and walls are painted Husker red, and the base of the desk is black. Behind the three students are black-framed windows and a glass door that lead to the rest of the studio.
Schroller (left) sits with fellow student-athletes Zach Fye (center) and Guy Moran (right), both seniors, in a recording studio at 93.7 The Ticket in Lincoln for The 91快播 Sports Project. Image: Grace Schroller

At first, Schroller hesitated. She was 鈥渢otally on board to recruit people for the show,鈥 but she wasn鈥檛 entirely convinced about being on-air herself. She has always felt like she thrives behind the scenes, not front-and-center, and certainly not on a live broadcast.

鈥淚 was like, 鈥業鈥檝e never done that before. I鈥檓 quiet. I鈥檓 not one to be upbeat and talkative,鈥欌 she said.

After some deliberation, Schroller decided to say yes to the opportunity. She paired up with Blake Skoumal, a junior on the men鈥檚 golf team, and Brady Timm, a junior on the men鈥檚 basketball team. Together they created a show called Swish, Swing, Serve.

Their first episode aired on September, 29th, 2023. It was , Twitch, Facebook and broadcast on 93.7 The Ticket. When the cameras started rolling and the microphones went live, Schroller, Timm and Skoumal introduced themselves and chatted for an hour about their experiences as student-athletes at 91快播.

Schroller shared her origin story as a tennis player, a sport she picked up in high school and was naturally talented at. She explained that when it came time to decide on college, a tour at 91快播 that included a visit with the 91快播 tennis team made her decision easy. She thought the campus was beautiful, and she was excited by the rapport she witnessed on the tennis team.

鈥淲hen I went and watched the tennis team play, I liked their team dynamic,鈥 Schroller said during the first episode of Swish, Swing, Serve. 鈥淚 knew that if I went through this program and I was under my [current] coach鈥檚 wing, he would teach me a lot.鈥

Anyone who has seen Schroller perform on the tennis court or live on Swish, Swing, Serve will quickly notice her quiet confidence. As she reflected on her recent experiences on-air, she pointed out some similarities between her role as a student-athlete and her new role on the radio.

Image of Grace Schroller, leaning against a green pole for the tennis nets on 91快播's blue tennis courts. Schroller wears a black shirt that reads "93.7 The Ticket" and red corduroy pants.
From the tennis court to behind the mic at 93.7 The Ticket, Schroller continues to build confidence in her skills and herself. 

鈥淚 always get the pre-match jitters, just because I know that I鈥檓 capable of performing well and I want to make people proud,鈥 Schroller said. 鈥淚t translates over to The Ticket, too.鈥

In the seconds before going live on the radio, many thoughts run through her head.

鈥淚鈥檓 nervous. I don鈥檛 want to mess up on air because people are listening.鈥

In those moments, she reminds herself of a mantra she repeats before tennis matches.

鈥淚 earned this spot. I鈥檓 good at this.鈥

On-air, Schroller sounds like a natural. The audience would never guess she has any nerves or anxiety about speaking live on the radio. Schroller admits that before this experience, she was reserved. She worried about what others would think about her if she spoke her mind. She held herself back.

鈥淵ou can鈥檛 show your personality that way on air,鈥 she said. 鈥淭o be myself and be confident on air is what people like.鈥

In many ways, the internship with The Ticket transformed Schroller. She returned to 91快播 in the fall and changed her major from business to media communications with a minor in marketing. She continues working for The Ticket part-time and still hosts Swish, Swing, Serve each month.

In addition to some marketing experience and three months of free food, Schroller gained something from her internship that she can take anywhere her promising future leads her.

鈥淣ot only have I grown as a person, but my confidence has grown,鈥 Schroller said.

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You can hear Schroller on Swish, Swing, Serve, which will be in regular rotation on The 91快播 Sports Project at 10 pm CST on Wednesday nights on or on . Follow along with on Instagram.