By Ethan Hudson
The town of Greenwich made their presence felt all the way in Sarasota, Florida last week thanks to the dominant performance of the Greenwich Crew team at the USRowing Youth National Championships. Between June 12-15, Greenwich Crew claimed two national championships in what is widely regarded as one of the most competitive youth rowing events in the country. With it being considered a great achievement just to qualify, Greenwich Crew further established themselves as one of the premier youth rowing clubs in the country.
The titles were won by Greenwich’s Men’s Under 16 8+ boat as well as the Women’s Under 17 8+ boat, out of over 200 competing programs. Additionally, the Women’s Under 17 4+ boat also captured a bronze medal for Greenwich. Although no more boats would reach the podium for the team, Greenwich Crew still enjoyed two other top-five finishes, coming from the Women’s 1V8+ boat and the Men’s 2V8+ boat securing 5th place, respectively.
The men’s gold squad for Greenwich, led by coxswain (steersman of the boat) Caroline Stowe, consisted of Daniel Lisboa Da Cunha De Freitas, Cristopher Pomara, Everett Andrews, Kai Licznerski, Ryan McDonald, Gabriel Bisio, Alessandro Baldinucci, and Edward Willott. Finishing with a time of 6:11.66, the group’s combined efforts under pressure and position of their strokes propelled them to the first place finish. For the 5th place boat, manned by coxswain Averi Israel and rowed by Henry Lovejoy, Hunter Zeppelin, Tyler Hatstadt, Peter Murphey, Samuel Woody, Oliver Willott, Theodore Nestoros, and Sean McKenna, the crew clocked an impressive time of 6:02.52.
“These results are a testament to the mindset our athletes bring to every practice and every race,” said Men’s Head Coach Cary Wasserman,. “Winning at the national level—especially with such young crews—takes more than strength; it takes maturity, trust, and the ability to execute under pressure.”
On the women’s side of things, guided by coxswain Andrea Nguyen, the goldmedal squad was made up of Nuria time of 7:11.54. For the 5th place boat, led by coxswain Saira Mitchell and rowers Kaitlyn Droscoski, Liana Hoffman, Elizabeth Reid, Kateri Daly, Katharine Kerko, Elisabeth Schmitz, Lynn Gulli, and Margaret Owens, the crew earned a time of 6:41.24 in a highly anticipated race. Hoffman, Gabriela Estela, Maggie Barratt, Victoria Bergholt, Alexandra Laverge, Josephine Herman, Lily Higgins, and Madeleine Martin. Their boat crossed the finish line with a time of 6:44.85 and sizable lead, further showcasing the skill and discipline of Greenwich’s rowers. For the bronze-medal boat, coxswain Makayla Jaffe commanded rowers Elia Amaro, Paulina Almy, Tessa Murphy, and Linnea Barrachin to a come-from-behind finish, narrowly securing their spot on the podium and finishing with a
Perhaps what is most exciting is the future ahead for Greenwich Crew. “To see two of our youngest eights crowned as national champions and another boat rally for bronze shows that our program is building not just elite rowers, but courageous competitors,” said Women’s head coach Paul Ruggeberg. Wasserman agrees. “What we saw in Sarasota, in every Greenwich Crew race, was the result of athletes who are meticulously prepared, mentally disciplined, and fully committed to racing with purpose and heart,” he said. With a program filled with young rowers who still have room to grow and plenty of more regattas to attend, Greenwich Crew expects plenty of more hardware to come.
