Meet the Speakers
Click on each photo to learn more about our speakers
Dean Oliver
KEYNOTE ADDRESS
Sports Analytics Pioneer
Project Specialist,
Sports Statistics, ESPN
TITLE: TBD ABSTRACT: TBD
Alok Pattani
CLOSING KEYNOTE
Developer Advocate,
Google Cloud
TITLE: TBD ABSTRACT: TBD
Amanda Glazer
Assistant Professor,
Department of Statistics and Data Sciences
University of Texas at Austin
"Tractable Algorithms for Changepoint Detection in Player Performance Metrics" ABSTRACT: In this talk, I will present tractable methods for detecting changes in player performance metrics and apply these methods to Major League Baseball batting and pitching data from the 2023 and 2024 seasons. I propose a changepoint detection algorithm that combines a likelihood ratio-based approach with split-sample inference to control false positives, using either nonparametric tests or tests appropriate to the underlying data distribution. I will demonstrate the utility of this approach across several baseball applications: detecting changes in batter plate discipline metrics (e.g., chase and whiff rate), identifying velocity drops in pitcher fastballs, and validating changepoints against a curated ground-truth dataset of pitchers who transitioned from relief to starting roles.
Udit Ranasaria
Director of Deep Learning, SūmerSports
"Transforming the Big Data Bowl" ABSTRACT: TBD
Vishakh Sandwar
Research Engineer, SūmerSports
"Transforming the Big Data Bowl" ABSTRACT: TBD
Natalie Kupperman
Assistant Professor of Data Science,
University of Virginia
"Athlete Biometrics: Balancing Innovation and Privacy" ABSTRACT: Biometric technologies are transforming sports by providing unprecedented insights into athlete health and peformance. Yet with this power comes pressing questions about privacy, ownership, and athlete rights. This talk explores the ethical dimensions of biometric data in sport, highlighting challenges around consent, data governance, and commercial use. Drawing on current research and real-world practices, I will discuss how teams and organizations can responsibly navigate the full data lifecycle—from collection to application—while safeguarding athlete autonomy. Ultimately, protecting athlete data privacy is not just a legal necessity, but a cornerstone of fairness, trust, and long-term innovation in sport.
Catharine Ramage
Senior
Carnegie Mellon University
Bio: Catharine Ramage is a senior at Carnegie Mellon University pursuing a double major in Statistics and Data Science as well as Business Administration. She has worked as an analyst for Honeycomb Credit, a private credit startup, as well as for StepStone Group in their venture capital division. Catharine has participated in sports analytics research for the Carnegie Mellon football team, and has been researching performance analytics on the unique sport “Buggy” for the past three years.