2020 Grad hits home run with Savannah Bananas
RCDS alum Hannah Grenier (‘20) is spending her summer on the road with the Savannah Bananas, an exhibition barnstorming baseball team based out of Savannah, Georgia. Founded in 2016, the team has become increasingly popular, selling out stadiums around the country.
After graduating from The University of Tulsa Collins College of Business in December 2023 with a B.S.B.A in Business Management, Grenier accepted a one-season role with the team as a ticket operations intern.
Ticket operations represent one-third of the ticket experience department with the Bananas and are focused on the analytics and overall operations of the department. With a demand of more than two million fans hoping to purchase tickets, the team uses a lottery system for ticket sales. Grenier ensures that fan requests are in order before the lottery selection and ticket launch. She fields fan inquiries about tickets between the time of purchase and game time.
Grenier says her time at Riverfield prepared her well for her role with the team.
“I am grateful for all the experiences I had and the opportunities I was given to raise my professional, personal, and leadership skills because I have felt so set up for success in my early career because of it,” Grenier said.
On a normal game day, Grenier works with the team to strategically map out the full setup for the weekend to create the best operational, efficient system while ensuring all decisions and experiences are “Fans First.”
“Fans First is the idea that behind every action, decision, and thought, we are ensuring that we are placing the fan at the forefront of our minds, committing to putting the fan experience above all else,” Grenier said.
The Bananas are currently on an eight-month world tour, and Grenier has the pleasure of traveling to many of the ballparks along with the team.
“One of my favorite trips was a two-week extended trip where we played in both Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Mesa, Arizona. The ballparks out in the west were so colorful and vibrant and had the most stunning backdrops,” Grenier said. “The Savannah Bananas also started playing in MLB stadiums for the first time this year, starting off with Minute-Maid Park in Houston and just wrapping up a trip up to Boston’s Fenway Park.”
Fans First Entertainment owns the Savannah Bananas as well as the Party Animals and the Firefighters. Grenier has been working many of the first Party Animals headliner games to kick off their mini-world tour.
“One of my favorite and most memorable moments of the job is just getting to be part of the team’s history as they grow. Stepping into Minute-Maid with the team on the first day, knowing that we were upping our traditional capacity by four times as many people, looking out into the empty stands, and realizing the magnitude of what this company is doing is just so flooring,” Grenier said.
“Getting to play in Fenway Park, one of the most iconic and historic ballparks in the world, adding a third team to the company, starting the Party Animal’s first-ever headlining world tour, getting to watch Jocelyn Alo (former Oklahoma Sooners softball home run queen) play for her one-month contract, and so many other little and huge moments,” Grenier continued. “I just feel like it’s such an honor to be part of the history and growth of this organization, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to play my small part in it.”
