Midwest Championships Recap

The Milwaukee Rowing Club Juniors had a strong performance at the Midwest Junior Rowing Championships. Out of the twenty events in which the juniors program was entered, MRC had thirteen boats qualify for the finals. These juniors earned the most medals at Midwest in MRC history. The boys team had a successful day, earning first place in the 2nd Novice 4+ and placing third in both the 1st Novice 8+ and the 3rd Varsity 8+. The girls team took the bronze medal in the 1st Varsity 4+ event, qualifying them for the Youth National Championships.

Boys 2nd Novice Four - Midwest Champions!
Lineup: cox: Katie Robrecht, 4 George Lawton, 3 Stuart Dantoin, 2 Jack Pondel, 1 Michael Leykin

The Boys 2nd Novice Four had an exciting race pushing ahead of the field to win the title. MRC finished with a time of 7:15.08 before St Louis (7:16.26) and Upper Arlington (7:20.02). This is the second year in a row in which a second novice boys boat has won gold at the Midwest Junior Rowing Championships.

Boys 1st Novice Eight - Bronze Medal Winners
Lineup: cox: Grayson Van Lue, 8 Will Alt, 7 Jack Latterell, 6 Taylor Miklaszewski, 5 Oliver Kissinger, 4 Jack Pondel, 3 Stuart Dantoin, 2 George Lawton, 1 Michael Leykin

The Boys 1st Novice Eight showed toughness in their grand final when they established the third position behind St Louis and Cincinnati. The boys finished with a time of 6:41.54 a comfortable margin ahead of Upper Arlington (6:45.96).

Boys 3rd Varsity Eight - Bronze Medal Winners
Lineup: cox: Grayson Van Lue, 8 John Misey, 7 Matt St. Amour, 6 Dan Fee, 5 Garrett Badalich, 4 Dan Zaydman, 3 Jack Karnes, 2 Gary Lu, 1 Ben Schnese

The Boys 3rd Varsity Eight was successful in there hunt for medal position. They finished behind Cincinnati and St Louis with a time of 6:52.10. This earned them a bronze medal, well ahead of 4th place Westerville (6:58.10).

Girls 1st Varsity Four - Bronze Medal Winners
Lineup: cox: Julia Campbell, 4 Alli Spencer, 3 Elise Schedler, 2 Allison Brunner, 1 Kylie Diffley

The Girls 1st Varsity Four was the last race of the day for the girls team. They had a good position early in the race. As they approached the finish line, they were in a heated battle for 3rd against Dublin Crew. The MRC girls were able to edge it out and finish with a time of 7:34.23 just ahead of Dublin (7:34.88). They finished behind Cincinnati and Twin Cities. Being a 1st Varsity event, the bronze medal earned them a bid to the USRowing Youth National Championships where they will compete against the best in the country in Sarasota-Bradenton, FL (June 12-14). 

Athlete Spotlight

Paul Boechler

Senior at Shorewood High School

When/Why began rowing:

I began rowing the summer after my sophomore year. I started rowing because it seemed like a good fit for my height, plus It seemed like a unique sport unlike many school athletics. I also knew a few rowers at my school who urged me to give it a try.

Favorite workout:

To be honest I enjoy any day out on the water. But if I had to choose, it would probably be long steady state up the inner harbor, back down then up the Menomonee, then finally back to the boathouse. I feel like this helps the team build endurance strength but also with boat feel and technique.  

Favorite aspect of rowing:

My favorite aspect about rowing is definitely the mental discipline. Everyday I leave practice more physically and mentally tough than before. But the mental toughness is something that not only helps you succeed as an athlete, but also succeed outside of practice.

Favorite rowing season & why:

Spring is by far my favorite season because of the teams high energy. After sitting through a long hard/tiring day of school, practice livens you back up. I also love this season because racing is more intense than anything else I’ve ever experienced.

What motivates you to work hard?

I would say that I am a competitive athlete, and I work hard because I know that on race day it will all pay off. I also demand improvement from myself daily, which I can do because I have awesome teammates and coaches to push me to my max everyday.

Favorite race & why:

Personally I don’t have a “favorite” race. I enjoy every regatta because it gives my teammates and I a chance to do better than the last race.

Interests/hobbies outside of practice:

Outside of practice I mountain bike, longboard, aggressive skate, graphic design, play guitar, play sports, go hiking, and hang out in the outdoors.

Interesting fact about yourself:

I have five sibling, I lived in Panama for a year (Central America), I grew up on a farm.

Favorite quote:

“There are two types of Pain in this world: Pain that hurts you, and Pain that changes you!”

Athlete Spotlight

Grace D'Souza

Sophomore at Whitefish Bay High School 

When/Why began rowing:

Since I was younger, people always noted my height and told me I would be a natural rower. I also love to be on and around water, so rowing seemed like a perfect fit. In the summer of 2013 I decided to try Learn to Row, just to see how I liked the sport. 

Favorite workout:

My favorite workout on the erg is 1000m to 100m (even though I complain every time we do it) and on the water I like to do the Lake Washington Pyramid. I like both of these workouts because they over prepare you for a 2000m race, making it seem less difficult in comparison. These workouts also require you to exert 100% of your energy for a long period of time; it makes the boat tougher.

Future plans:

While on my team, my goal is for us to qualify for Junior Nationals at least one more time. Additionally, I would really enjoy rowing for a school in college. 

Favorite aspect of rowing:

My favorite aspect of rowing is that everyday you discover something new about yourself. You push yourself to a new limit, challenge your mental strength, or learn something about your character. Everyday is something new and I think thats something unique to rowing. 

Favorite rowing season & why:

My favorite season of rowing is Spring season. I love the competitive atmosphere, 2000m races, and the opportunity to race at Midwest. 

What motivates you to work hard?

My teammates motivate me everyday. I work hard to improve myself so that we can succeed as a team. I'm so lucky to have such a strong group of girls motivating me to be the best I can.

Favorite race & why:

Head of the Charles is my favorite race because we are surrounded by elite rowing programs from around the country, and masters from all over. I love the city of Boston and seeing the enthusiasm the people have for rowing. Most importantly, the race course is beautiful and fun to row on.

Interests/hobbies outside of practice:

In addition to rowing, I play varsity tennis and varsity ski race with my school.

Proudest accomplishment in your life so far:

My proudest accomplishment thus far has been placing 13th at Junior Nationals in the Lightweight 4+. Seeing how far I came in just one year of rowing was an incredible transformation for me. I'm also extremely proud to have represented our club on a National level.

Favorite quote:

 “What mattered more than how hard a man rowed was how well everything he did in the boat harmonized with what the other fellows were doing. And a man couldn’t harmonize with his crewmates unless he opened his heart to them. He had to care about his crew.” Daniel James Brown, The Boys in the Boat

Athlete Spotlight

Tommy Ferrara

Junior at University School of Milwaukee

When/Why began rowing:

I began rowing the summer after Freshman year. I was good friends with James Lueken freshman year through hockey, and he talked about rowing during our car rides from hockey and school, so that got me interested in joining. Also, my sister was a coxswain on the team and loved it.

Favorite workout:

Lake Washington pyramid is one of my favorites. It starts off easy and then gets really hard, forcing your boat to work together and push each other every piece.

Future plans:

Hopefully get the chance to rage at Nationals with the boys.

Favorite aspect of rowing:

I love the team aspect of rowing and how close everyone becomes on the team. It is fun to have another group of good friends outside of school.

Favorite race & why:

My favorite race was the 2013 Head of the Charles. This is my favorite because I was a novice, and experience my first Head of the Charles with my sister being my coxswain. Also the energy in the environment of the race is incomparable to any other race. Another favorite race of mine was my first ever race in Chicago when Brad Wolff and I raced in boxers, both forgetting trou.

Who is your role model & why:

My role model for rowing is definitely coach Peter Helfer because of his ability to row at one of the nation's top collegiate rowing teams, while being a smaller guy like myself. This pushes and shows me that it is possible to do even though many say you have to be a huge guy to row in college.

Interesting fact about yourself:

I love clothing and have a lot of it. Especially Vineyard Vines #whaleup. I also enjoying hanging out with Cole Wirth and Peter Helfer on the weekends.

Favorite quote:

“Life is one grand, sweet song, so start the music.” - Ronald Reagan