Page C2
April 14, 2011
ThisWeek Community Newspapers Westerville
Rowing
Westerville boys, girls expecting big spring By JARROD ULREY ThisWeek Community Newspapers
The Westerville high school club girls rowing team got shut out in its bid to adv ance boats to the US Rowing Youth Nationals last June. The depth that the team has shown throughout the winter months in both its heavyweight 8 and lightweight 8 boats gives coach Trish Chase confidence that that scenario won’t play out again next month. Three members of Westerville’s heavyweight 8 boat and one from its lightweight 8 already have made commitments to compete in college, and there likely will be others signing from both boats in the coming weeks. Westerville opens its regatta schedule Saturday, April 16, as host to the Hoover Invitational on Hoover Reservoir. Thirtyfive teams and more than 1,400 athletes competed in the e vent last year and bigger numbers are expected for this year’s meet, according to Chase. “We’re very optimistic about the upcoming season, ” said Chase, who along with her husband, Matt Chase, are in their 16th seasons heading Westerville’s program. “With over 90 rowers on the team, we have very nice depth. The majority of the women’s heavyweight 8 are being highly recruited by Division I universities. The varsity lightweight women also look very competitive. Both squads have their eye on US Rowing Youth Nationals this year.” New Albany seniors Ashley Bauer (Ohio State) and Amanda Poll (Ohio State) and Westerville Central senior Anna Lind (Iowa) of the heavyweight 8 boat will row collegiately. Poll is the coxswain, while Bauer sits in the seventh seat and Lind is in the fourth seat. Also on the boat are senior Cara Linse (Olentangy Liberty), juniors Lindsey Brown (Upper Arlington), Victoria Langerwasser (Olentangy), Tatiana Lundstrom (Westerville North) and Boston Shields (home school) and sophomore Jackie Huddle (New Albany). Westerville North senior Alex Sawatzki will be coxsw ain for the lightweight 8 and plans to sign with Ohio State. Also vying for spots on the boat are Westerville North seniors Alison Ed-
Schedule
WESTERVILLE April 16 — Hoover Invitational on Hoover Reservoir April 23 — Cincinnati Invitational on Lake Harsha in Batavia April 30 — Governor’s Cup Regatta on Griggs Reservoir May 7 — vs. Upper Ar lington on Hoover Reservoir (girls only) May 21-22 — Midwest Junior Championships on Lake Harsha *June 10-12 — US Rowing Youth Nationals on Melton Hill Lake in Oak Ridge (Tenn.) *For qualifying crews
girls lightweight 4, which placed 10th (7:50.592). This season, coach Gina Crooks believes her best boat might be its heavyweight 4 that features senior Kat Bauer, juniors Mikaela Duckworth, Olivia Gugliemotto and Sydney Casey and junior coxswain Sarah Asad. Each of those rowers also will be on the team’s heavyweight 8 boat along with junior Baile y Irelan and sophomore Maddie Irelan. Sophomore Tess Cassidy is the team’s top lightweight rower, according to Crooks. “So far things are looking great,” said Crooks, who along with her husband, Jared Crooks, are in their third seasons as cocoaches. “We’ve had a huge turnout with our novice program. I believe we have three 8s of novices, and we only had one boat of novices in the fall. I think it’s just been because of w ord of mouth. We really have high hopes for our girls varsity 8 and all of our 4s.” Seniors Ben Cahalin and Griffin Fillman are lightweights who are serving as captains for the boys team. Senior Brady Basham is the team’s top heavyweight rower, according to Jared Crooks. “We’ve almost doubled our numbers (since last year), so it’s been pretty crazy,” Jared Crooks said. “We started off with one 8 and now we’ve basically got two 8s. We have more numbers, but we also have a lot more athletes. I’m pretty excited about my lightweight 4 and my hea vyweight 4 boats.” •The Hilliard girls club team has 11 competitors this spring, including five who came out for the sport for the first time. Back from last season are seniors Paige Holcomb and Morgan Staric, junior Samantha Schmucker and sophomore Erin Rose Shaeffer. Competing in novice boats likely will be juniors Danielle Johnson and Jessica Takos and freshmen Terri Boganwright, Courtney Duke, Alycia Ridgeley, Amanda Vaught and Chelsea Wheat. “We’ve been out all the days we’ve wanted, except for two,” second-year coach Jackie Ruetenik said. “They’ve been holding their own, so that was good to see.”
wards, Emi Grandjean and Sarah Scott, Worthington Christian junior Liz Akin, Worthington Linworth Alternative junior Gracie Bachmann, Liberty sophomore Kaitlyn Cantrell, Westerville Central sophomores Grace Busick and Delaney West and New Albany freshman Kelsey Michely. The boys team’s lightweight 8 boat finished 10th (6 minutes, 13.985 seconds) and its heavyweight 8 boat was 19th (6:21.15) at Youth Nationals last June. Expected to compete on the heavyweight 8 boat are seniors Hunter LaCorgne (St. Charles), Jon Lucas (home school), Tyler Lucas (home school), Jeremy Sobiech (Westerville North) and Mike Tarnapoll (New Albany), junior coxswain Taylor Gainey (Pickerington North), juniors Ben Leonard (home school) and Conor Moran (Big Walnut) and sophomore Josh Gould (home school). Tarnapoll has been accepted to Cornell and Sobiech will row for Jacksonville. The boys lightweight 8 boat will be comprised of seniors Matt Casper (home school), Grant Mohar (Olentangy) and Matt Murdoch (DeSales), senior coxswain Kevin Heppner (Westerville North), juniors David Casper (home school), Danny Just (Westerville North) and Jon Weiss (New Albany) and sophomores Ryan Kesselring (Westerville South) and Patrick LaCorgne (St. Charles). “I’m excited with the coming spring,” Matt Chase said. “My varsity men worked hard through the winter, and we have early signs of it paying off.” •Dublin was represented at julrey@thisweeknews.com Youth Nationals last year by its www.ThisWeekSPORTS.com
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Commentary
Bearcats’ Preacher jumps at opportunity to succeed Early season track meets can be a challenge for high school athletes. There usually is the issue of getting back in competition mode, and the weather certainly can be a factor. The Watkins Memorial Icebreaker Invitational was held the first weekend of the spring sports season and it lived up to its name with temperatures in the 30s. But the cold seemed to have no effect on Brookhaven senior standout Nigel Preacher, who won the high jump at 6 feet,9 inches and the long jump with an effort of 21-10. How good was that performance? The 6-9 would have won the Division I state title last spring, and the 21-10 would have been seventhbest at state. Preacher followed his sterling opening performance by high jumping 6-8 the ne xt weekend in the Wildcat Premier at Hilliard Davidson. “My early season success has surprised me some because I hadn’t jumped a whole lot entering the competition,” said Preacher, who was third in the high jump (6-7) and 11th in the long jump (21-4 3/4) at state last year. “My goal this year is rather simple. I want to get the gold medal in the high jump at the state (meet) and I want to place in the long jump.” Preacher, who moved to Columbus a year ago after attending Pontiac Northern High School near Detroit, said his attitude toward jumping is kind of unusual, but it works for him. “Most jumpers are way more serious in competition and practice than I am,” he said. “I actually think I am kind of a goofball and jok e around more than I should, but my relaxed attitude seems to help me under pressure and my success, especially in the high jump, has made me much more self-confident. I remember when I started high jumping in the se venth grade I didn’t think I was very good at all, but my coaches said I had lots of promise. When I started track in the ninth grade, I added the long jump because I loved watching my older teammates compete in it. “My success in the long jump hasn’t come as
easy, but that challenges me even more. I have a long stride, which helps me in the long jump and I actually like it better than the high jump, but I’m not as skilled at it.” A year ago, Preacher high jumped 7 feet in a meet at Mifflin. He said he o wes all his LARRY positive results to his coach, LARSON Steve Ayers. “My coach has prepared me so well for track,” Preacher said. “He has made me do a ton of conditioning and it tak es a lot more running than you would think to excel at both the high jump and the long jump.” Ayers said Preacher works hard at his craft. “Nigel has a very good work ethic. He trains hard and his willingness to be great is what makes him a good jumper,” Ayers said. “The experience that Nigel had last year at the state championship meet has helped him a lot. There are many kids who freeze up under that kind of pressure and Nigel embraced that situation and took his (natural) ability and used it.” Preacher, whose twin brother, Aryton, is one of the top sprinters in central Ohio, said the more pressure he faces, the better he competes. “I really love it when I know I have great competitors against me. It always makes me want to jump higher and higher,” he said. “I love the atmosphere at big track meets and I lo ve the excitement that the crowds bring. I know I clown around a lot of times, but I used to be a real quiet kid and with this success in track it has bumped my personality up and it has made me much more confident in everything I do. Track has really made a difference for both Aryton and myself. We are lucky to have it in our lives.” I’ll see you at a meet. Larry Larson is a former athletics director at Grandview High School. He can be heard as “Mr. High School Sports” on WTVN 610 AM.
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