I took a chance and came to York County. Thank you for the chance to tell your stories

I was both terrified and annoyed the entire two-hour drive.

It was spring of my senior year at Penn State, and I was interviewing to be a page designer at the York Daily Record. It wasn't the job I was looking for. I wanted to be a sports writer. But I figured it was worth getting some interview experience — and it wasn't like people were knocking down my door with job offers.

I thought I would likely embarrass myself. What did I know about newspaper design? Not much outside of a few trial runs in the classroom.

I certainly didn't think I was walking into the place where I would spend the formative years of my career.

But interviewing for that position ended up being one of the best decisions I've made. It led to the most rewarding job I could've imagined. It led to me becoming the person I am today.

Friday was my last day at the York Daily Record. After nine years with the company — eight and a half as a sports reporter in York and Adams counties — I'm leaving full-time journalism for a communications job in the education field.

A big part of this decision was practicality. My wife and I moved about 90 minutes east in 2022. She had gotten a job opportunity too good to pass up. We were closer to family. But I kept this job for as long as I felt I physically could. That's how much I loved what I did.

But our family is entering its next chapter. If there's anything this job taught me, it's how to change, grow and adapt.

And it's simply time to turn the page.

Why this job has meant so much to me

It ended up being the ultimate blessing in disguise.

My stint as a page designer didn't last long, but the timing lined up when there were multiple openings in the sports department. I ended up being offered a position as a sports reporter with The Evening Sun in Hanover.

It might've been the perfect time to get acquainted with the York-Adams sports scene. Hanover High School's football team was having its best season in decades. It was the height of Eli Brooks mania in Spring Grove. Northeastern boys' volleyball was in the middle of its dynasty. Hali Flickinger was preparing for her first Olympics.

The energy around those events was intoxicating. I had covered Penn State athletics in college. I knew what a good atmosphere was. When Bermudian Springs hosted Boiling Springs in wrestling, it felt like I was back in Rec Hall watching Cael Sanderson's team hit the mat. That probably sounds insane. I don't care. It's true.

I was also blown away by the talent surrounding me in The Evening Sun and York Daily Record newsrooms — both from the young up-and-comers and the established veterans. Our photographers were multimedia geniuses. Our news reporters dug into issues at the state and national levels. Like most wannabe sports reporters, I had grown up idolizing national columnists like Bill Simmons and Rick Reilly. Now? I wanted to write like Jim Seip and Frank Bodani when I grew up.

(The two of them will probably want to kill me for writing that. I don't care. It's true.)

I was encouraged by my editors to be creative and find different ways to tell stories — not to stick to a print-designated word count or write something that would simply fill up space.

And I got to cover more high-profile people and events than I imagined. I interviewed multiple Olympians. I had a wide-ranging conversation with Cal Ripken Jr. (still not sure he was thrilled I asked him about steroid use in Major League Baseball). I moderated a discussion with Bruce Arians months after he won the Super Bowl. I stood on the field at Beaver Stadium and helped with Penn State football coverage. I attended the NBA Draft in Brooklyn — and nearly got trampled by Victor Wembanyama's entourage when I turned the wrong corner.

But those aren't the moments that stick with me the most. My passion became covering high school sports. And it was because of the in-depth stories I was able to tell and the personal relationships I was able to develop.

Most people looked at Tesia Thomas and saw the volleyball state championship and track gold medals. Or they saw NCAA gymnastics champion Trinity Thomas's little sister. I'll never forget her trusting me enough to tell me how she was struggling with seizures from epilepsy.

People looked at Beau Pribula and saw a superstar quarterback. I'll never forget locking eyes with him a few minutes after Central York's sobering 62-13 loss to St. Joseph's Prep in the 2020 state championship game. He had broken his foot in the second quarter. I wouldn't have blamed him for brushing off an interview. Instead, he limped over to me and answered every question.

I've come to learn adults often underestimate how mature some kids are. And it wasn't just those aforementioned superstars. Time and time again, student-athletes opened up to me about agonizing personal situations — sometimes even deaths in their families. I knew this might be the one time their story got told.

Telling it accurately and fairly was more important to me than any glitzy professional or collegiate event I got to cover.

Accepting and embracing change

Sports reporters aren't supposed to cheer for the teams they cover. Personally, I've always been a fan of the "root for the best story" mantra.

But there hasn't been a better story in recent years than the improvement of York County teams at the state level. When Central York's football team faced reigning PIAA Class 6A finalist Central Dauphin in the 2020 playoffs, reporters around central Pennsylvania scoffed at the notion the Panthers had a chance. I braced myself for another story about a local team coming up short.

Central York's 42-15 win and subsequent run to the state final seemed like the most memorable and rewarding experience I could get from this job.

So when the Panthers basketball team took me on a similar thrill ride last month — this one culminating in a historic state championship — it felt like a sign it was time to move on. Those feelings were reinforced during my final interview with a York County athlete, Central York's Greg Guidinger.

"The right fit isn't always the perfect fit," he said while explaining his recent college decision. "You have to make the most out of what is presented to you."

That's better than any life advice I can give. Again, these kids are more mature than most people give them credit for.

But if I could pass on anything to the student-athletes reading this: Do what makes you happy, but don't run away from change. Because your life is going to change. It's inevitable. Accept it and make the most of it. Don't be afraid to take a new path if your heart tells you it's the right call.

That's what led me to York County nine years ago, and that's what gives me peace of mind today.

I know my weaknesses as a writer. I write way too long, and I recently accepted I've never quite figured out how to end a story as well as I start it. We're at that point now. So I'll finish with this: Thank you for accepting a kid from New Jersey who didn't know this region and allowing me to learn and grow. Thank you for being patient with my mistakes.

Thank you for letting me tell your stories.

Matt Allibone is a former sports reporter for GameTimePA. He can be found on X at @bad2theallibone.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Sports reporter Matt Allibone says goodbye to the York Daily Record