Capital Crew boats place at Youth Nationals

Capital Crew sent three boats to Youth Nationals in Sarasota, Florida, June 9-12 and all three boats qualified for the finals with the women's youth 2 boat winning a national championship with a first-place finish. The boat featured Lily Crook, a recent graduate of Oak Ridge High, and Elsa Hartman, a graduate of Granite Bay. The two girls finished the 2,000-meter race in 7 minutes, 43.22 seconds, winning the race by nine seconds in front of the second-place team. "Before getting there I had no perception how we would do," Crook said. "It was my first time being there and my main goal was to reach the A final. Once we had the time trial and saw we posted the fastest time, then I knew we had a chance to win. After winning, we just collapsed because we were so tired. I didn't really process that we placed first in the national race until the following day. The fact that we won by nine seconds made it even more impressive." Capital Crew's women's varsity coach, Sarah Puddicombe, was proud of the duo. "Elsa is one to watch for sure, as she will be returning to the USRowing Selection camp to try and earn a seat again in a Jr. World's boat, as she was bow seat last year in the Jr. Women's 8+ that won gold," Puddicombe said. "Lily, who will be attending Notre Dame in the fall, has been a keystone piece for our team. Lily is a true leader by example. It has been an honor to coach her for five years. "After not being allowed to race for two springs because of the pandemic, it was truly special what these two athletes achieved, as they can now call themselves National Champions." The women's U-17 8+ boat also reached the finals, taking fifth in 7:01.34. Members of this boat included two Oak Ridge students (Grace Torchiana and Isabelle Delavoye) and one from Folsom High (Mary-Margaret Anderson), as well as two from St. Francis (Daniela Lopez and Grace Jurrens), and one from Davis (Kate Schroeder), one from Bella Vista (Natalia Cederborg) and one homeschooled (Audrey Boxwell). Alyssa Ramirez from St. John's MS is the coxswain. "The U17 8+ has been a fun boat to coach all year," Puddicombe said. "With seven out of the nine athletes being first-year rowers, what they were able to achieve this year was incredible. I have to thank my assistant coaches Haley York and Alana Holt for getting the first year U17's up to speed. They are the future of our team and represented their teammates back at home strongly by finishing fifth in the country." The men's youth+ placed sixth at youth nationals, posting a time of 6:39.85. Members of this boat include Jesuit students Hudson Meyer and Noah Ferguson, Isaiah Gossard from Stillwater Academy and Nathan Keel from Bella Vista, along with Margaret Waltz, the coxswain, from St. Francis. "The men's four went above and beyond," Coach DeDe Birch said. "For most of the season, they were the second four. Right before our regional championships there was a challenge made and the second four ended up coming out on top and became the first four. Each race they faster. Most importantly, it was great to watch them move have become better and from just being a team on the water to becoming a team on land. We are very proud of them. Nate is off to Sacramento State in the fall and Hudson will be rowing for Santa Clara University."