By Paul Silverfarb
It was a weekend to remember for Greenwich Crew during the 2021 USRowing Youth National Regatta.
Traveling down to the Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota, FL for competition in the national event, Greenwich Crew had four boats take top honors and a total of seven boats competing in the Youth Finals.
“I’m so proud of our athletes,” said Cary Wasserman, head coach of the boys’ team. “We have an amazing group of young men and women on this team. The team culture is amazing and has driven us to this success. This was our first national title on the men’s Squad and it’s something that we’ve been working towards over the past five years. To see all their hard work come to fruition was amazing. Only one other program has won four national titles in the same year when Seattle Rowing Center did it back in 2014. We were the first program to ever do it in sweep. We also tied Marin Rowing for the most (athlete) gold medals when they won three eights in 2011. Just an unreal accomplishment.”
“We are fortunate to be able to race the best teams here in the tri-state area all season so these athletes came in with a confidence that they could do well but when you move to a national regatta you know that anyone and everyone is fast which is really exciting,” said Catherine Starr, co-head coach of the girls’ team. “They really raced with a scrappiness and toughness that we try to embody as a team and that more than anything is what makes me proud. If a boat goes down the racecourse and it doesn’t look the prettiest but it races hard and really goes for it – I’m proud.”
Meredith Blanchard, a member of the championship-winning Women’s Youth 4+ boat, said that one of the hardest parts was the heat of Florida.
“All of our fitness was already solidified, and our coaches do a good job teaching mental toughness, so those parts weren’t a challenge,” she said. “The real difficulty was recovering after a whole day baking in 100-degree heat. We are not accustomed to those types of conditions in Connecticut, and it was a game of who could recover the best between the time trials, semis, and finals.”
The girls’ team had two boats take home the gold medal. In the Women’s Youth 4+ final, the team of Blanchard, Isabelle Ritchie, Eva Andersen, Lucy Barratt, and coxswain Hannah Scott conquered stiff competition from RowAmerica Rye and San Diego and crossed the finish line first with a dominating time of 7:21.133. San Diego placed second with a time of 7:23.817 and RowAmerica took third with a time of 7:24.792.
“Having been a member of Greenwich Crew for four years, it felt like nationals was a culmination of all of the hard work and growth I’ve witnessed here,” said Blanchard. “I arrived on this team while we were still the underdogs, and the dream of being the ‘fastest boathouse in the country’ was still a dream and not a reality. It feels like we both embodied the legacy of the rowers who came before us and left a legacy of our own. I can’t believe all of my hard work finally paid off, and I am so proud of all of my teammates.”
Not to be outdone were the Greenwich Crew participants in the Women’s Youth 8+ Final A race. The team of Caroline Schmitz, Phoebe Wise, Olivia Schnur, Kathryn Alexander, Witney Wise, Schuyler Hyde, Lilly Sutter, Brooke Legenzowski, and coxswain Frances McKenzie also finished on top of the podium, edging out RowAmerica Rye and taking home the gold with a time of 6:33.844. RowAmerica Rye’s second place time was 6:36.032.
“It was so exciting competing in Florida again with all of the biggest teams from across the U.S.,” said Schnur. “It was a very special experience to have everyone in one place and to be able to test our speed against our greatest competitors after such a long time.”
Making history for Greenwich Crew was the team in competing in the Men’s Youth 4+ events, as the team of George Gilfond, Matthew Phillips, Samuel Terry, and Trent Boone gave the program its first top finish at the Nationals. Their time of 6:26.418 was heads and shoulders better than the rest of the competition, as the next closest team was OARS with a silver medal time of 6:30.453.
Also posting a lights out performance for the boys’ team was the group competing in the Men’s U-17 8+ event. The team of Harry Waters, Felix Dosmond, Samuel Wilson, Max Willott, Marcus Chung, Max Raabe, William Drinkall, Boris Gans, and coxswain Nick Walding finished golden by crossing the finish line with a blistering time of 6:09.528. The next closest time was just under five seconds away from Greenwich Crew.
“This has been a two-year mission for these guys,” Wasserman said. “When we lost our racing season last year, the resilience of our squad really showed. We weren’t sure USRowing was even going to host the National Championship until a few months ago. The guys kept their eyes on the prize and never complained. Because of the pandemic, we started the fall out in groups of five athletes and couldn’t make lineup switches at all. Over the winter, our athletes worked out exclusively outside, the freezing cold, during the darkness of the night. We lost our normal winter training trip down to Florida and most of our regular season races. The whole time, the team stayed focused on the mission, and we now have the national titles. Nobody can take that away from them.”
The girls team also picked up a silver and fourth place. Competing in the Women’s U-17 8+ event, the team of Catherine Ruff, Nicole Urquiga, Maddy Sweet, Julia Doss, Adair Beck, Belle Bordier, Laura Nguyen, Laura Koester, and coxswain Lidia Dodaro finished second overall in the event with a time of 6:50.273, just around six second quicker than the next closest squad.
Alexandra Fenaroli and Ella Moore were facing stiff competition in the Women’s Youth 2 event but still had a solid performance and finished fifth overall with a time of 8:02.624.
Keeping the good times rolling for the Greenwich Crew girls’ side was in the Lightweight Women’s Youth 4+ event, as the foursome of Alexandra Wilkowski, Allison Millspaugh, Gianna Savianno, and Hannah Justicz finished fourth overall with a time of 7:25.870.
“This year was more about having a mental framework for being tough and adaptable,” said Starr. “To be honest, we did less actual work this year than we have ever just because of scheduling but each workout the athletes made count. Anytime we discussed how to approach the hard work or racing they faced it with such gratitude – once you know something can be taken from you, you hold on pretty tightly to it and I think that really showed up in how they raced – they were fearless because they love each other, racing and this sport.”
Also having a breakout performance was the group from Greenwich Crew that took part in the Men’s Youth 8+, as the team of Ryan Bucaria, Brandon Mark, Willem LeBrun, Max Feenstra, George Lathrop, Robert Sherman, Andrew Cavanagh, Eric Genden, and coxswain Elenna Seguin finished Nationals fifth overall and netted a time of 5:57.222. Greenwich was mere inches away from fourth, as Sarasota Crew took home a time of 5:56.153.
“The seniors on this squad have been here for this transition,” Wasserman said. “They have always wanted to turn Greenwich into the fastest boathouse in the country. The leadership they’ve provided to the younger guys is unlike anything I’ve seen as a coach. Our Captains Sam Terry and Trent Boone have been fantastic as are the other senior leaders on this team. Matt Phillips, Ryan Bucaria, Mark Razanau, Max Feenstra, George Gilfond, Robert Sherman and Charlie Ellis all worked together to create a culture of excellence.”
Starr believes that the seniors on the Greenwich Crew boys’ and girls’ programs always have a huge impact on the way a team operates. She also added this year they were able to keep the history and culture of the program alive while also putting their own brand of sauce on it.
“Their racing mentality is their own but it’s also a product of so many alums who have set this program up so well,” she said. “We had incredible captains but also seniors who were really willing to mentor and show leadership across the board and the team will be forever grateful for their kindness and ability to make the hard work fun. Alongside this showing at nationals our regional success was huge and that was really the product of the seniors willing to take ownership of this team and our athletes across the board embracing them and what this team stands for.”
