Point Park University Students Excel in Cavaliers Ticket Sales Challenge Tuesday, November 25, 2025
After a successful ticket sales season, students from Point Park University were the center of attention on the basketball court as the Cleveland Cavaliers hosted students at their Point Park Night on Nov. 15.
"Doing the work hands-on made everything from the classroom feel more real and more important. It changed how I look at my classes because I can now see exactly how the things we learn translate into real results."
When offered a chance to showcase their skills at basketball ticket sales, students at Point Park University showed that they were on the offense this season.
Working together to sell tickets for the Cleveland Cavaliers, students participated in the ticket sales competition to gain real-world experience in the high-paced environment of the sports business. Students were able to excel, selling over 80 tickets to the NBA games.
“We competed with five schools in Ohio located near Cleveland and we finished second in revenue generated for the Cavaliers,” said Bob Derda, chair of sports, arts, entertainment and music business (SAEM) program. “That’s quite an accomplishment when you consider we are 120 miles from Cleveland!”
Throughout the academic year, students in the sports sales team program work together to sell tickets for games over a two-to-three-month period. This requires these students to work closely with teams like the Cavaliers, Pittsburgh Pirates and the Pittsburgh Penguins to gain insight into the vital business process of major league sports.
“A lot of what I’ve learned in my SAEM classes showed up in real time — customer relations, understanding buyer motivation, pitching value and even basic sales communication,” said Joshua Isenberg, a senior in the SAEM program and the top performer in ticket sales. “Doing the work hands-on made everything from the classroom feel more important. It changed how I look at my classes because I can now see exactly how the things we learn translate into visible results.”
The ticket sales process is something that students report as a rewarding experience, full of unique challenges.
“Selling tickets for the Cavs was honestly one of the best learning experiences I’ve had. It pushed me out of my comfort zone with cold calls, emails, meet-ups, and tabling around campus,” Isenberg said. “One of the challenges was getting comfortable hearing ‘no’ and learning how to adjust my pitch to make it more personal and valuable. But once I found my rhythm, I really enjoyed building connections, talking with people, and helping them find seats that fit what they wanted. Finishing with 35 tickets sold and winning the entire competition was a huge highlight and made the work even more rewarding.”
“Though difficult at times cold calling numbers and getting rejected, you quickly learn that it's a part of the process and not everyone is going to purchase from you,” said Drew Hauser, a junior in the SAEM program. “Once you get past the awkwardness of people saying no, it’s much easier to sell tickets.”
While a great learning experience, faculty say that the sales challenge also serves as a major career booster for students. According to Derda, students in the program truly shine and earn a reputation of excellence among professional sports teams in the NBA, NFL, NHL, MLB and NASCAR.
This combination of real sales experience and expert direction in the classroom helps distinguish students at Point Park among their peers.
“Now that I’m a postgraduate, I’ve had the opportunity to speak with students from colleges and universities across the country, and those conversations have made me truly appreciate what Point Park offers its students,” said Kate Painter, a SAEM graduate pursuing a master’s degree in business administration and the Cavs Sales Team manager. “Point Park excels at placing students directly into industry roles, which is exactly what they did by allowing me to manage communication with our Cavs Sales Reps, coordinate phone jams and tabling assignments and organize our bus trip. Because of the unique real-world experience Point Park has given me, I feel confident and prepared to succeed in a full-time position in the industry.”
For Dana Drewniak, a 2017 graduate of the SAEM Program and group events specialist for the Cavaliers, that work experience is what helped her enter the industry.
“Point Park really set me up for success by giving me countless opportunities to network with professionals across the sports and entertainment industries,” Drewniak said. “I felt confident and prepared when it was time to interview and apply for jobs, and I am incredibly grateful for the connections and relationships I built while at Point Park!”
Working on the other side of the sales relationship, Drewniak says that students from Point Park come “hungry to learn,” showing professionalism throughout the process. By getting that taste of the sales industry, it gives students an upper hand when launching into the workforce.
“The reason I was initially drawn to go to Point Park was because they provided hands-on experiences such as this one,” Drewniak said. “For me, I did not want to be stuck in a classroom, but rather out seeing first-hand what my future could look like post-graduation. I love that I am now able to provide that same benefit to the next generation of students!”
Students from the Cavs Sales Team were honored on the court on Nov. 15, but that is not the end of these students’ sales journey. As they continue to work with professional teams, more opportunities will be offered to showcase their skills as some of the best students in the country.
“A byproduct of our sports sales program is participation every year in the National Collegiate Sports Sales Competition where winners advance each February to compete in sales championships at State Farm Arena in Atlanta,” Derda said. “Point Park students have excelled in the competition and the Point Park team has finished in the Top 25 in the country for the past four years.”