Senior Shant Pamboukian Adjusts to Role as Lone Sports Broadcaster

After two years of gaining experience and growing in sports broadcasting, Shant Pamboukian is currently the sole live broadcaster for Tuscarora Sports.

The sports broadcast program at Tuscarora hasn’t been around for long, with only Aiden Butler, Class of 2020 and Ronan Heykoop, Class of 2022, preceding Pamboukian.

Despite being such a new program, the impact at Tuscarora has been felt. 

“It really just adds a lot more and makes the school feel like more of a family, especially the student run part… I’m pretty sure there’s only one, maybe two other schools in the county who actually do that,” said Pamboukian, a senior.

This year, Pamboukian shoulders this task alone. Heykoop graduated this spring, and no young new recruits have pounced on the opportunity to amplify sports and athletics at Tuscarora.

“It is a lot more pressure and is a lot harder to adjust,” Pamboukian noted.

In his time announcing alongside Heykoop, Pamboukian was the color commentator to Heykoop’s play-by-play. 

“I used to do color, which is a lot easier, cause I wouldn’t have to talk as much,” said Pamboukian.

Most commentators operate with a partner, and it is especially essential if the broadcast is audio only, like The Pack’s Mixlr and NFHS broadcasts are.

Thanks to this deficit, Pamboukian is responsible for both speaking on the analytical side of each game, and ensuring the listener is informed of every movement on the field.

“It’s been something to deal with and to overcome,” Pamboukian commented.

Looking to improve your craft as a young sports broadcaster is a challenge enough as it is. 

“Just talking in front of a ton of people and having that subconscious pressure that I could mess up or I could say something wrong,” said Pamboukian.

Many high schoolers partake in extracurricular activities that aid public speaking skills, but not many do it live. The sports broadcasting program here at Tuscarora presents a unique opportunity to students who are passionate about supporting their friends on the field and developing a niche skill which they may later mature into a career.

“When I started, it was really just as a hobby, almost to get me out of the house. Later on, as I was broadcasting more and more games, I realized I really did love doing it,” Pamboukian noted.

Pamboukian’s journey in sports broadcasting at Tuscarora had rocky beginnings, with 2020-2021 fall and winter sports seasons altered by COVID, but it has only improved since then. While COVID offered new challenges in broadcasting, it presented a greater need for the service Heykoop and Pamboukian provided the school community.

The pair were noticed by The Washington Post in spring of 2021, who reported on their broadcasting ventures. 

“It really helped my parents understand that I’m serious about this, about doing it as my future,” said Pamboukian.

Despite the turmoil which COVID-19 wreaked on the world of high school sports, the sports broadcast program at Tuscarora received a gift of greater purpose and recognition. 

“It is just such an amazing feeling to have your work recognized,” Pamboukian stated. 

As he continues to broadcast football and basketball games, Pamboukian will continue striving to improve and fulfill his niche in the sports community at Tuscarora.

In terms of what’s next for Pamboukian, he said, “I still have more to work on; I’m not perfect in broadcasting and I still want to get better… I could see myself doing it my whole life.”