Montaner Fresilli connects sports and life
Fresilli will sit out the season after shoulder surgery, but will be contributing to the football team in other ways PHOTO CREDIT: gorhody.com
Montaner Fresilli, from South Kingstown, Rhode Island, has a more versatile athletic experience than many.
In high school, Fresilli was a five sport athlete, competing in football, basketball, outdoor track, swim and lacrosse. Football was Fresilli’s primary sport, where he was two-time team MVP and, as a senior, his league’s most valuable player.
After graduating high school in 2019, Fresilli continued his journey at the University of Rhode Island as a sports communications major and member of the URI football team. Since Fresilli got to URI, he has been a key player for the team as well as a huge contributor for Rhody sports media. Fresilli has worked with several Rhody media outlets, most notably conducting interviews on the football team’s Instagram page on topics that range from position previews to athlete profiles.
Over the summer, Fresilli interned at local news station ABC6 with Sports Director and former Rhode Island Broadcaster of the Year Nick Coit. This was a dream nearly five years in the making.
In fall of 2017, Fresilli began his journey in sports media, working on high school football stories. Since then, through conversation and connections, Coit and Fresilli cultivated a bond that would carry on for years.
Fresilli played five sports in High School and was heavily involved in media, and likewise, Coit grew up with roles on the baseball diamond and on the stage in his theater productions. These similarities in their upbringings allowed for a seamless partnership this summer. To this day Fresilli finds high school sports to be the “purest form of sport” because the focus is on the love of the game, not money.
Through continued involvement with alma mater South Kingstown High School’s football team, Fresilli has given back to his football roots and home of his true passion by working with the media and helping coach aspiring football players.
Coit said that Fresilli stood out to him because of his ambition for sports media and compared his contributions in the newsroom to what it is like for a college football player.
“He was eager to learn (and) he was willing to learn,” Coit said. “Like in football, you step up, you’re willing to help, you’re willing to do anything to help the team.”
Fresilli thrives off of his multidisciplinary involvement, believing it is important to be well-rounded and his participation in arts and athletics throughout the years has helped him immensely.
“It strengthens the creative side of the brain,” Fresilli said. “[It helps me] understand that there are multiple ways of doing things, and that’s the same exact thing in the arts, sports media, reporting, onscreen or anything of that nature.”
With his experience with ABC6, Fresilli was given the opportunity to learn in a fast-paced environment where he was able to hone his leadership skills. Coit likened Fresilli’s personality in the news room to his demeanor on the field: one of a natural leader.
Unfortunately, during the spring season, Fresilli sustained a posterior shoulder dislocation and will be unable to play football for his senior year. Through his surgery, Fresilli said the team has been a huge source of support.
“The team has been awesome,” Fresilli said. “From my coaches to my teammates and everybody in between.”
Through Fresilli’s five and a half month recovery he will continue to stay active on the football team with his daily physical therapy and Instagram interviews. As for now the destination of that dream is uncertain, however, in contemplating graduate school, secondary education, education administration, politics, or a further career in sports media, Fresilli has the drive to go far.