• Kathryn Tappen is a sports broadcaster best known for her work with the NBC Sports Group.
• She has a net worth of over $1 million.
• She grew up playing a variety of sports and attended Villa Walsh Academy and Rutgers University.
• She has worked with the CBS Sports Network, WJAR, the New England Sports Network, NHL Network, and NBC Sports.
• She was married to former professional ice hockey player Jay Christopher Leach, and is active on social media.
Contents
Who is Kathryn Tappen?
Kathryn Tappen was born on 9 April 1981, in Morristown, New Jersey, USA, and is a sports broadcaster, best known for her work with the NBC Sports Group. Her work there has led her to the coverage of numerous professional sports leagues, including the National Hockey League (NHL), and American Football (NFL).
The Wealth of Kathryn Tappen
How rich is Kathryn Tappen? As of mid-2019, sources estimate a net worth that is over $1 million, earned through a successful career in sports broadcasting. She reportedly earns at least $50,000 annually from her work with NBC, while she also has other projects that give her additional income. As she continues her career, it is expected that her wealth will also continue to increase.
Early Life and Education
Kathryn grew up in Morristown, and was very involved in sports from a young age. Due to the lack of girls’ teams in her area, she played a lot of basketball and baseball with boys’ teams. She also played other sports such as tennis and golf ,while running cross country. She attended Villa Walsh Academy which is a private preparatory school in her area. The school is a member of the New Jersey Association of Independent Schools, and is one of the most selective in the state.
During her time there, she focused exclusively on track, and sp gained a scholarship to enroll at Rutgers University. After matriculating from high school, she took on the scholarship, becoming a member of the school’s cross-country and track teams. The university is the largest institution of higher education in the state, and is the eighth oldest college in the country. It was named after Colonel Henry Rutgers due to his financial support of the institution. She completed a degree in journalism, while also setting numerous marks as a school athlete.
Sports Broadcasting Career
Shortly after completing her education, Tapper started her career working with the CBS Sports Network. The company started out with a focus on college sports, but later re-branded to cater to the mainstream audience, while still covering smaller leagues and events, also analysis and studio based programs. While working with them, she also held a job at the Providence, Rhode Island based station WJAR, for which she served as a weekend anchor and weekday sports reporter. Eventually, she left both to begin working for the New England Sports Network (NESN).
NESN is known for its broadcasts for teams such as the Boston Red Sox (baseball) and the Boston Bruins (ice hockey). They also showcase minor league games, regional college events, and sports talk shows. In 2011, she joined the NHL Network and became the host of the show “NHL Tonight” a position she held for three years. She then decided to join NBC Sports, and for her work, she’s received the Woman of Inspiration award given by the Boston Chapter of Women in Sports and Events. She also won an Associated Press Award for her feature entitled “Swim Meet”, and has gained two New England Emmy Awards for sports reporting.
Former Husband – Jay Leach
Kathryn gained a lot of popularity when she married former professional ice hockey player Jay Christopher Leach. He was drafted in 1997 during the fifth round by the Phoenix Coyotes, and spent several years in minor leagues until he was picked up by NHL’s Boston Bruins. There, he spent most of time with an affiliate, before being signed by the Tampa Bay Lightning. He was then traded to the Anaheim Ducks before signing with the New Jersey Devils. Afterwards, he moved to the Montreal Canadiens to work on defense. He played a lot of games with the San Jose Sharks before he was traded back to the Devils where he ended his career in 2013.
He then transitioned to a coaching career, becoming an assistant in the Deutsche Elshockey Liga at Alder Mannheim. He helped the team win a championship in 2014, and then became a part of the NHL as an assistant coach to the Pittsburgh Penguins affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. In 2015, he became the interim head coach of the affiliate team, before landing a position as an associate head coach under Clark Donatelli. In 2016, he left the team to join the Providence Bruins, serving as an assistant head coach before he was promoted to be the head coach of the team.
Personal Life and Social Media
For her personal life, it is known that Tappen married Leach in 2009 and they stayed together for five years before deciding to divorce, the reasons for which have not been shared publicly. There are no reports of Kathryn having subsequent relationships, During her free time, she does a lot of charity work, and is a member of the Board of Directors for the MARSOC Foundation. It is an organization that is dedicated to providing support to active and medically retired US Marine Corps personnel, as well as families who have experienced loss in service.
Had an unreal day golfing with @DylanDreyerNBC & @KiraKazantsev … and the fans on the course make my ❤️ melt. @ACChampionship #accgolf ?? #OnHerTurf pic.twitter.com/nOZjuWM3Q5
— Kathryn Tappen (@KathrynTappen) July 13, 2019
Similar to numerous sports broadcasters, she is highly active online through accounts on social media. She has an account on the website Instagram on which she posts personal photos, often including friends and family. She also has a Twitter account which has over 120,000 followers, and uses the account to promote her recent and upcoming endeavors. Another account she has is on Facebook, with over 18,000 followers.
She also goes to a lot of sporting events, and still plays golf when she has free time.
Social profile links
Source: IMDb, Wikipedia
1 Comment
It was a real pleasure having Kathryn Tappen on the side line on Sunday night football instead of the old one! she is a keeper 🙂