Liberty University Club Sports Athletics
Large turnout for tryouts allows crew team to fill three boats
9/24/2021 6:14:27 PM | Rowing
Practicing out of its indoor erg room at the Liberty Club Sports Complex, Liberty University’s men’s and women’s crew team endured two weeks of strength and conditioning before testing the waters over the past two weeks at Smith Mountain Lake.
“For the first two weeks, we were indoor, trying to assimilate our new group, learn about the culture of the team, and get some practice in, teaching them the basics of the rowing machine,” Liberty Head Coach Debbie Prowse said.
The Flames and Lady Flames had 19 student-athletes try out for this season’s squad, including a couple novices with rowing experience in high school. They have formed a 27-rower roster made up of 16 women and 11 men, enough to form men’s and women’s Novice 8 and women’s Varsity 4 boats.
“This year, just having a larger group and seeing the interest is really exciting,” Prowse said. “It’s exciting for those veterans that have stuck it out and stayed. They’re happy to have more kids and to just build that team spirit. We’re really looking forward to having a strong team.”
“I like the friendly competition, so, if we can fill up boats and race for seats, that makes it a lot more fun,” junior coxswain Tim Bentz added.
A high percentage of the newcomers have committed to the program, making the majority of the practices — held Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday from 6-8 a.m. on the lake near Mitchell’s Marina complemented by indoor erg and weight training workouts on Tuesday and Thursday.
“Most have been very good about getting up and getting to practice on time,” Prowse said, noting that a bus shuttle picks up from two spots on campus for the 45-minute commute. “It is a challenge for new rowers, and they have all adapted really well.”
“As rowers, you have to have a lot of patience,” she added. “It takes some time, and there are a lot of variables, especially when you have seven other people rowing in your boat. We are taking it day by day, doing a lot of drills and fine-tuning technique.”
Prowse said the returning varsity rowers have been extremely helpful in taking the newcomers under their wing.
“We have been putting a couple varsity rowers in each boat, so the novices have someone to follow,” she said. “After the first few days of practice, we could incorporate experienced rowers with new rowers and build that team camaraderie and have the veteran rowers be a support system for the new rowers.”
Senior team captain Lindsey Bicknell returns as the overall team captain, with Bentz, the men’s team captain, and senior Morgan Schaible, the women’s team captain. Junior Robin Payton is the team’s spiritual leader, leading team devotionals and prayers when not in the boat rowing with her peers.
The six returning rowers, which also include seniors Zebediah Foster and Morgan O’Connor, as well as the newcomers, are anticipating their first regattas since the Head of the South in November 2019, when Liberty’s Mixed 4 and Lady Flames Varsity 4 won gold medals.
“We haven’t really raced at all since before COVID,” Bicknell said. “So we have a lot of good races planned for this semester, and we have a ton of new novices that we want to get out on the water and get them learning as fast as we can so we can get prepped for our races.”
Prowse will hold seat racing in Monday’s practices at the lake, swapping out rowers to see who can make the boat go fastest. Then on Tuesday, she will put them through an erg test to determine which rowers can pull with the most power.
The Flames and Lady Flames will take three boats — a women’s Varsity 8 and men’s and women’s Varsity 4 — to the Oct. 3 Music City Head Race, a 5,000-meter in Nashville, Tenn.
“That is a fairly new regatta, and it is gaining in popularity,” Prowse said. “It is a really neat venue in downtown Nashville, and the course on the Cumberland River goes right by Titans Stadium, so it will be fun to go to a different venue. We are looking forward to having fun, getting back on the water, and getting some experience.”
The women’s Varsity 4 has qualified to compete in the prestigious Oct. 22-24 Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston. Two other events on the fall semester schedule are the Nov. 6 Head of the Hooch in Chattanooga, Tenn., and the Nov. 12-13 Head of the South in Augusta, Ga., where Prowse plans to enter men’s and women’s Novice 8 and Varsity 4 boats, as well as a Mixed 4 with her top two men’s and top two women’s rowers.
By Ted Allen/Staff Writer; Video by Hayden Robertson/Club Sports Video & Media Assistant
