Mar 23, 2008
Banner year ahead
High hopes surround Greenwich Crew teams
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The Greenwich boys and girls crew teams have plenty to be excited about this season.
Heading into the spring season, coaches for the Greenwich crew teams have high expectations for the teams’ success.
“We are in a very good position to excel in terms of the whole team,” boys head coach Chris Cabrera said. “In the past couple of years, we’ve had slow success in terms of maybe one boat doing well and the next season a few boats doing well. Going into this spring, we are in a position where the whole team, using every single boat, will do extremely well this season.”
“We have a deep squad and not a lot of minuses this season, which is why we are so confident,” girls head coach Nate Young added. “We got two full eights, and the ability levels and techniques for the girls in those eights are quite good. In terms of fitness, all of the girls have broken eight minutes in the 2,000-meters. Last year only two girls broke eight minutes, so that’s another good reason for our confidence.”
Both squads are aiming high this spring because of all the hard work they put in during the winter training season. All those hours on the ergometer machines paid off during the CRASH-B event that look place last month at Boston University’s Agganis Arena.
“We use indoor rowing testing as a big component to our evaluation process when we put girls and boys in boats,” Young said. “The fact that the kids did so good in CRASH-B’s is excellent and boosts our confidence in selection. Because there are no stars in rowing, as it’s like the ultimate team sport, there’s no way for a kid to stand out as an individual. That’s where CRASH-B’s really let an individual athlete shine and get some credit.”
When competing against the top rowers in the world, placing anywhere in the top 50 is a huge honor. Greenwich had a plethora of athletes scattered throughout the top 50, including Andrew Reswow, who placed third overall, and Gustov Rydevik, who netted a fifth-place time. Five other Greenwich crew boys took top 50 honors. On the girls side, Kristen Lunder finished seventh and teammate Patricia Susquilanda took 14th.
“We got some major scores from Boston in the winter,” Cabrera said. “We got more than a handful of kids that placed there, so we are definitely excited. In terms of rowing, half of the game is mental. Most races are won even before you step in the water. The fact that these kids are doing so well at the International level in the winter season, it gives them a boost of confidence.”
Leading the way this spring season will be four stellar rowers. On the boys side, Reswow and Nick Hoffmann are the co-captains.
“I am really psyched for the spring season because I know our guys are going to put in a ton of work throughout the teams and levels,” Reswow said. “We’re going to do great. We’ve kept active all winter and through last fall I have been rowing on the ergs and we’ve been able to get on the water recently, so I feel like we’re going to definitely make some gains.”
Tatiana Cooke and Hannah Johnson will co-captain this year’s girls team.
“It’s fantastic to be a captain,” Johnson said. “I have been rowing since middle school, so it’s great to represent my team and I am really looking forward to this season. I think the girls team is really strong, on all three boats. We all have a chance to row at Nationals, so that’s fantastic. We’re excited and I am pumped for the season.”
Young and Cabrera said they expect strong leadership from all four captains, both in and out of the water.
“We expect the team captains to do the job when we are not there,” Cabrera said. “They gather the team, build friendships and other things, not only at the boathouse but at the school as well, and then they see each other on the weekends.”
While the boys team has a roster of more than 50 athletes, Reswow and Hoffman will be getting help from returning rowers from last year Greg Riddell, Alex Hagan, Rydevik, and Chris Parker.
“We’re excited about the season because the kids are hyped up before we even started,” Cabrera said. “We started on the water last week and these kids are already excited for May, which is our big race season. The fact that they did so well in the winter gives them and us a huge boost of confidence.”
Although winning is always a plus, Cabrera’s goals are to help develop the team as a whole.
“Our main focus is for the kids to really come together,” Cabrera said. “I rowed when I was their age in high school, and that experience will stay with me forever, so I want them to have that as well.”
In rowing, there is a huge advantage when it comes to size. With Greenwich High students competing more and more in football, lacrosse and baseball, getting big athletes in the water has been a challenge for Greenwich crew. Cabrera said he plans on combating that by working constantly on the team’s conditioning.
“We need to make up for the lack of size,” Cabrera said. “We work these kids harder than any coaches do throughout the country because we need to make up for the size difference. When we get out on race day and other teams see us being small, they think we’re easy to beat, and then we blow them away with our conditioning and strength.”
On the girls side, Young said that with more than 35 talented athletes on the roster, winning the Connecticut Public Schools State Championship, as well as advancing to the finals at Nationals, is expected.
“Those are our two big goals for us, which means we would improve over last season,” Young said. “Our biggest improvement is going to be technique. Because we’re such a young team, with three or four sophomores in the top boat, they are very green in terms of being prepared to race and still get very bad race jitters.”
“I think we could take it to Nationals and further,” Cooke added. “With the team we have, I think it’s possible. Hard work is always important; however, we have a lot of team spirit and everybody comes here to work out and is really determined. We are all very driven and they want it, so that’s going to help us.”
The Greenwich crew teams start the season in grand fashion. On April 6, both boys and girls teams will open the spring season at home, as they travel to Greenwich’s Grass Island and compete in the Greenwich Invitational. The event, which will consist of a 1,000-meter course and have squads from around the Northeast, gets under way at 9 a.m.
© Copyright 2008 by Hersam Acorn Newspapers
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