by Geoffre Sherman with Ryan Fletchall, Lindsay Modjeski, and William Weng
Back in November, working with Dr. David Pierce, I had the thought of bringing a student quartet together to compete in the Dr. Samantha Roberts Case Study Competition at the 2025 Applied Sport Management Association (ASMA) Conference in Cincinnati. It all came together when we thought Ryan, Lindsay, William, and Nate Ryan (who was unable to present due to illness) would make a great team. Turns out, they were a fantastic team!
The quartet was charged with writing an executive summary to position themselves for the actual presentation competition. The focus of the case was finding a city for the newest WNBA expansion franchise. With news of expansion popping out before and after the competition, the quartet wanted to find something unique and, dare I say, innovative. Let me explain the fact that they nailed it. Absolutely nailed it.
After discussing Philadelphia, Nashville, and Austin, the group settled on Denver for the next WNBA franchise. The Denver Rush was conceptually born.
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Now, while I have a “role” as the faculty advisor, one of the things that people need to understand is that our involvement is supposed to be limited. So, I really limited mine. I don’t think I had any clue what they were doing until just a few days before the executive summary was do and that was by design. A pair of Zoom meetings between myself and the quartet was the level of involvement I had in the preparation of this case argument. I helped them finalize the summary and sent it off to the leaders of the competition and that was about it. It was all up to them to piece together a presentation and they came through big time.
We traveled on Wednesday to Cincinnati and got into the social dinner at Nippert Stadium, but we had barely discussed the case and were down a person due to illness. So, the trio would have to adapt and crush it or we would’ve left a little earlier than we did. From 8 p.m. until around 1:30 a.m., we worked tirelessly at cleaning up the presentation and shortening it to the 15-minute maximum. Grinding through an evening like that was not in the cards, but had to be done. That was my involvement. I knew very little about the content, just what they needed to do to compete well.
An early wakeup on Thursday put us together one last time before the presentation for a rehearsal and they came in well under the 15 minutes and my confidence was high. The trio delivered. The level of poise and focus from all three of them exceeded expectations. I never get too high or low for these things because history (five case competitions) has shown we do well, but don’t win. So I went in with tempered expectations. They blew through them and went way beyond to the point where I left the room thinking: this team could win this thing.
So, we spent the evening enjoying each other’s company, grabbed some dinner, and pretty much zonked out after the long evening the night before. The Friday luncheon would be when we’d find out our result.
Two of the three students had to wake up and join our Capstone Teams call so it was get ready to go and be in class at the same time from the road. They did it and then we all walked our way to the Tangeman University Center, which is gorgeous by the way, where we grabbed the lunch food and sat in anticipation of the result.
We heard who won the first two divisions and then our division came up and they announced Indiana University Indianapolis as the winner and hearing that made my week! They had won! Holy cow! That was my response, but I had no doubts after the way they presented that they had a shot. They indeed had a shot and brought home a trophy for the first time in six tries!
Check out their reflections on the event and earning the title that they can keep in their academic portfolio and no one can take away!
Lindsay Modjeski, senior psychology major minoring in sport marketing
What a week! Who would have thought that stepping out of your comfort zone and challenging yourself could be so rewarding! Ryan Fletchall, William Weng, Nathaniel Ryan and I had an exciting few weeks working together to create a case study on expanding the WNBA to a new city. After looking into factors such as fanbase, location, market viability, etc., we finally settled on Denver. In just a few weeks, we were able to put together a 15-minute presentation and show why Denver is the place to be.
After all the hard work we put in, it was finally worth it! Hearing your school’s name be called as the national champion is a feeling I will never forget! It was an amazing honor to be able to represent IU Indianapolis at the 2025 ASMA National Conference in Cincinnati. Staying on the road, away from home turf never makes anything feel easy, but we were able to come back with a win. Having the opportunity to talk to students/staff from other schools was also a huge eye opener for me. I will forever be grateful for the opportunities I have received just by being in Indianapolis and attending a great school!
Lastly, I wanted to thank Dr. Geoffre Sherman for his mentorship, my teammates for their support and dedication throughout, and Nate, who was not able to attend but played a huge part in getting us this win. I am excited to bring this win back home!
Check out the full LinkedIn post with photos: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/lindsay-modjeski-716423254_what-a-week-who-would-have-thought-that-activity-7297736491328229378-of1X?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAASZUxgBGC6mQlblNNZJW6Zr9taSw49AldI
Ryan Fletchall, junior sport management major
🏀What started as an idea quickly turned into an unforgettable experience. William Weng, Lindsay Modjeski, Nathaniel Ryan and I came together to build a case study on bringing a WNBA team to Denver, aligning on strategy, market viability, and fan engagement. In just a few weeks, we crafted a 15-minute pitch, pushing ourselves outside our comfort zones to deliver a strong presentation.
🏆 Then came the moment we’ll never forget—hearing our school’s name called as the national champion. Representing our university at ASMA’s National Conference in Cincinnati, staying on the road, and competing at this level was an incredible experience. The conference presentations reinforced how powerful and uniting sports truly are. After talking with other schools and faculty I realized how incredibly lucky I am to be at an incredible institution where I have so many opportunities!
👨‍🏫Huge thanks to Dr. Geoffre Sherman for his guidance, my teammates for their dedication, and Nate, who played a key role but couldn’t attend. Proud to bring home this win!
Check out the full LinkedIn post with photos: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/ryan-fletchall-55476020b_sportsbusiness-asma-casestudychampion-activity-7296287372856414208-I5BT?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAASZUxgBGC6mQlblNNZJW6Zr9taSw49AldI
William Weng, senior sport management major
🏆 2025 ASMA Conference Case Study Competition – National Champions! 🏆
This past week, I had an incredible experience in Cincinnati alongside Ryan Fletchall & Lindsay Modjeski. We had the honor of representing IU Indianapolis in the Case Study Competition, where we worked on the expansion of a 16th WNBA team.
Since kicking off in mid-January, we dedicated countless late nights to crafting our executive summary and 15-minute presentation, focusing on key aspects such as location, team identity, brand development, target market, promotions, and partnerships. After extensive research and consideration of multiple cities, we ultimately chose Denver for its potential and the unique opportunities it offered for creativity and differentiation. Thus, the Denver Rush was born.
This was my first time competing in a case study competition – let alone at a national sports management conference – making it an incredibly special and unforgettable experience. The moment I’ll never forget was in a room of 250 people, hearing our school’s name announced as the national champions. My mind went blank as I stood on stage holding the trophy, overwhelmed with shock and excitement. But in that instant, I also reflected on the hard work we had put in and the confidence we had in our pitch. The joy and pride I felt for my team were indescribable, and I’m proud of myself for taking on the challenge despite a hectic schedule over the past month.
A huge thank you to ASMA and the University of Cincinnati for hosting such a fantastic event, and special thanks to the IU School of Health & Human Sciences, my incredible teammates Ryan, Lindsay, Nate, and of course, Dr. Geoffre Sherman, your guidance and for the opportunity to represent our school at a national conference.
This is a milestone I will always be proud of, and I’m grateful to have been a part of it!
Check out the full LinkedIn post with photos: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/william-weng_asma-cincinnati-wnba-activity-7296649770838765568-bGFh?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAASZUxgBGC6mQlblNNZJW6Zr9taSw49AldI
#Indy4Sports #SportsInnovation
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