Courtesy photo Eden Laase-Derouin has developed a storied career in sports reporting, particularly in women's college basketball on the national level.

ESCANABA – From local sports coverage in the Upper Peninsula to bylines in The Athletic, owned by The New York Times, Eden Laase-Derouin has built a career that spans local reporting and national media.

Laase-Berouin, 30, who professionally goes by Eden Laase, has held roles ranging from a Sports Illustrated internship in New York City to reporting at the Daily Mining Gazette in Houghton and later freelancing.

Her interest in sports journalism began early, influenced by family traditions and a lifelong love of basketball.

“When I was a little girl, I always loved sports. Growing up, I didn’t have cable, so we’d go to my grandparents’ house anytime there was a game on to watch as a family,” said Laase. “My parents went to Michigan State, and my dad was there when Magic Johnson was, so I always grew up watching MSU and college basketball.”

Like many writers, Laase also discovered a passion for storytelling at a young age. “I liked writing, as well, so I figured I’d combine the two. When I was 10, I told my parents ‘Hey, I want to be a sportswriter.’ They were like, ‘Okay, you’ll probably change your mind.’ I didn’t.”

Laase grew up and attended high school in Grand Junction, Colo., where she wrote for her school’s monthly newspaper. After graduating, Laase moved to New York City to work as an intern for Sports Illustrated through a scholarship with the Association for Women in Sports Media (AWSM).

She then went on to attend Gonzaga University in Washington, earning a journalism degree in 2017. One of her most formative experiences in college came during her senior year, when Gonzaga’s men’s basketball team made its first Final Four appearance. “By the time I was a senior, the men’s basketball team made it to the Final Four that year for the first time. I got to travel with them and cover the team. I really think that was such a big part of my development as a journalist.”

Her first full-time reporting job out of college brought her to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, where she covered Michigan Tech hockey for the Daily Mining Gazette. Though hockey was unfamiliar territory, she embraced the opportunity. “I’d never covered hockey before. I didn’t know anything about it, but I thought it would be a fun adventure – something very new. I thought I’d probably stay (in Houghton) for about a year and move somewhere else.”

While working at the Gazette, Laase met her future husband, Bryce Derouin, another sports writer at the paper and a lifelong U.P. resident.

“It was basically just the two of us in the sports department. We had to spend a lot of time together, so it’s a good thing we got along. Part of falling in love with the U.P. was falling in love with him and seeing (the U.P.) through his eyes.”

Over time, the region and its communities made a lasting impression on her, particularly through high school sports coverage.

“I really found that I loved the community, I loved the kids that played, I loved writing about them and telling their stories. We kind of felt like there was a gap in high school sports coverage, because resources were so limited working in a small newsroom.”

Inspired by their shared love of sports writing, Laase and Derouin launched Upbeat Sports, an online publication aimed at filling those gaps.

“We just wanted to spend some time covering basketball, football – those stories that we had grown to appreciate so much with him growing up there and me moving there and getting to experience life in the U.P.”

After operating Upbeat for about three years, the couple decided it was time to move on.

“It wasn’t a sustainable thing for us. We never saw each other because we were covering games in different cities every night. But ultimately, for me and Bryce, both, that’s the thing we are most proud of in our careers. It was so much fun, and it’s such a great memory that we have.”

Throughout her career, Laase has been particularly drawn to covering women’s sports and human-centered stories.

“I always wanted to write about women’s sports. When I worked in the U.P., I liked covering the high school girls the best, especially basketball. I feel that covering women’s sports is so important, particularly in this social climate. I find it really fulfilling to tell those kinds of stories.”

Laase noted that her favorite stories to write are those that highlight personal journeys of athletes.

“I love a human-interest story. I think people are what make sports great, and within that, everybody has their own journey and story.”

One of Laase’s stories in The New York Times, titled “A UNLV player feared pregnancy might end her career. Now a mom, she’s returning to action”, is particularly meaningful to her.

“She ended up having the baby and coming back to play a couple of months later, which I thought was a unique story and also very much speaks to a woman’s experience. A lot of women go through similar things – just because they’re not Division 1 athletes doesn’t mean they can’t relate to that.”

Now based in Boston, Laase covers women’s college basketball on a national level while remaining close to family.

“I cover women’s college basketball on the national level,” said Laase. “Boston isn’t the greatest location for that – it’s more to be close to my family.”

Laase’s husband, Bryce, also shifted to working in marketing – a move that supports his wife’s career ambitions.

“We kind of knew only one of us would be able to pursue journalism,” said Laase. “The schedules are very hard, like if you’re both working evenings. (Bryce) transitioned to marketing and is really enjoying it. He really supports my dreams of being a writer and sort of put his writing on the back burner, and I’ll always be so appreciative of that.”

Since leaving the Upper Peninsula, Laase has worked at the Colorado Springs Gazette and Just Women’s Sports. She now works as a freelance writer, with bylines in the Boston Globe, Hoops HQ, Yahoo Sports, The Athletic, The New York Times and more.

“Freelance is a grind, but it’s really fun that I get to tell the stories I want to tell,” said Laase. “I’ve got good relationships with a lot of publications that allow me to have that freedom. I really appreciate it for the time being. We’ll see what happens next, but for now, I’m thrilled with it.”