VERO BEACH — St. Ed’s varsity 4+ rowing crew went to the National Championship Regatta in Camden, New Jersey last Friday and Saturday over the Memorial Day weekend as a decided underdog against schools from the Northeast and elsewhere with rowing traditions that go back decades.
It was history making – not to mention a huge challenge – for a program that has only been in existence since 2005. Over the past three years, however, Coach Aaron Lee has prepared his athletes for bigger and better things.
Under the capable guidance of coxswain Ella Merrill, rowers Kris Menninger, Matt Murphy, Sean Barry, and Will Tremml proved to themselves and skeptics everywhere that they weren’t simply honored just to be there.
Sean Barry summarized what happened: “We had a very impressive showing at Nationals. The first day we finished second in our race, putting us straight through to semis on Saturday. In our semifinal heat we got second again, beating the number one seed and in the process putting ourselves in the Grand Final.
“The Grand Final is comprised of the top six boats in the country. We finished fifth, making us the fifth fastest boat in the country for our category. It really was a great weekend”!
It could have been one-and-done in a tournament where half the boats are eliminated in the first round. The Pirates set a goal of making it to the second day. They one-upped that by getting to the Grand Final.
The Pirates time for the 1500 meter Grand Final race was 5:03.258.
“I’m incredibly proud of what these guys (and girl) have accomplished this season overall and this past weekend in particular,” Coach Lee said once everyone was back in town. “This crew was given a remarkably low seed – 32 out of the 33 boats competing – and they made it clear from their first race that they were not going to accept that.
“They came out in their first race on Friday rowing incredibly well to make it straight to the semifinals on Saturday morning. Their race in that semi was incredible – after 1000 meters of a 1500 meter race they were sitting in fifth place and they just walked through the other boats to take second place by a half second over the top seeded boat in the event. It was an incredibly close race and a thrill to watch.”
The weekend’s rowing conditions were difficult, with strong, gusty winds, on-and-off rains, and temperatures in the 60s.
“These rowers represented their team and their school very well and set an incredibly high bar in their first appearance at this level,” Coach Lee said. “”They are already talking about what they need to do in order to place even higher next year. It’s a classy group and I’m just proud to be coaching them.”