Kacie McDonnell is Leaving NESN: A Tribute
Source – NESN’s Kacie McDonnell is moving on. The anchor’s contract expires next month and she’s decided to explore new opportunities, she confirmed to WEEI.com in a brief phone call Tuesday.
“I’m not sure what’s next for me,” she said. “I’m taking a breath.”
McDonnell added she plans to spend time this summer catching up with friends and family in Pennslyvania, where she is from.
NESN declined comment, citing company policy about speaking on internal matters.
McDonnell, 29, joined the regional sports network in August 2016.
It is with a heavy heart that I bring you the sad news of Kacie McDonnell’s imminent departure from NESN. I might not be the biggest viewer that regional network/cultural institution has. But I know talent when I see it. And when Kacie arrived with the force of a 10-megaton blast in 2016, I sensed in an instant she would be joining NESN’s all time Mount Rushmore of talent. Taking her place among such luminaries as Jenny Dell and Heidi Watney.
I didn’t think it would be over so soon. And hopefully it’s of her own volition and not some sort of delayed punishment for her unfortunate slip of the tongue describing some guy’s tank top.
… for which she apologized and I assume was forgiven for a simple mistake.
No, I’d rather think that her star simply burned too bright for a six state sports cable network to hold her. NESN, for all its eye for talent, is like a small school with a good program that can’t hold a coach for long because they keep jumping to the mid-majors. And Kacie McDonnell, with her polished broadcast skills, razor sharp journalism and vast knowledge of the wide variety of subjects she covers is destined more for the real powerhouse programs. She’s gone from this area, and the TVs at my gym will miss her, but she will definitely be onto bigger and better gigs, I’m sure.
And so, in honor of her departure, a tribute in pictures. This is not goodbye; it’s “see you soon.”