Edition 4, Volume 3, Issue 1

Edition 4, Volume 3, Issue 1

Pioneer Paddler The 2016 fall season began as past years had with test week being held during the second week of classes. Oarsmen started the season with a 20 minute test and a 2K test to set baseline fitness levels and to start the competition for seats for the Head of the Charles, the team s first regatta of the season. On October 23rd, the Charles boat, consisting of coxswain Chrissy Billingsley 19, Angelo Leitner-Wise 19 in the stroke seat, (3 seat)jack Gleim 17, (2 seat) Matthew Bush 17, and Ethan Schafhausen 19 in bow, travelled to Boston for the race. The men s V4+ finished eighth with a time of 18:23.14, only 26 seconds off of gold medal winners Florida Institute of Technology, securing their third top-ten finish in as many years. The Pioneer Navy returned home the next week for the annual Muskie Chase held on the Muskingum River. This was a particularly special race as it was the first home race at the newly renovated Lindamood-Vanvoorhis Boathouse. The men s 1V8+ boat won two out of the three 500-meter sprints to reclaim their Muskie Chase crown over Dayton, Ohio State, Cincinnati, and Case Western. The lineup was made up of coxswain Chrissy Billingsley, Page 1

followed by stroke seat Gleim, (7 seat) Bush, (6 seat) Martin Hall 18, (5 seat) Evan Odom 19, (4 seat) Scott Cressman 20, (3 seat) Aaron Smith 18, (2 seat) Schafhausen, and bow seat Leitner- Wise. The men s novice 4+ shell led by coxswain Manning Shaw 20, Max Mosey 20 in the stroke position, (3 seat) Michael Shrader 20, (2 seat) Bryce Griffin 20 and Brooks Spires 20 in the bow, also fared well sweeping Cincinnati in all three sprints. On yet another quick turnaround the men headed to Fairfax Station, Virginia the next week for the Head of the Occoquan. Three boats were entered in the regatta and all three were medal winners highlighted by the gold medal performances of both the varsity and novice four shells. The 1V 4+ finished first with a time of 16:49.67 and sat coxswain Billingsley, Gleim at stroke, (3 seat) Bush, (2 seat) Schafhausen, and Leitner-Wise positioned in the bow. The 1F4+ also won their race finishing in 18:00.94 and was coxed by Shaw, stroke seat Mosey, (3 seat) Shrader, (2 seat) Cressman, and Spires in bow. Lastly, the 1V8+ finished third with a time of 15:21.52 just 13 seconds behind race winner Saint Joseph s. The lineup featured Billingsley as coxswain, Gleim at stroke, (7 seat) Bush, (6 seat) Cameron Johnson 17, (5 seat) Odom, (4 seat) Sam Johnson 18, (3 seat) Hall, (2 seat) Leitner-Wise, and in the bow was Schafhausen. The men finished their season as per usual at the 43rd annual Bill Braxton Memorial Regatta. The Pioneers placed in four of their five entries. In the JV 8+ race the men captured gold completing Page 2

the 2,000-meter course in 6:31.79. The shell was coxed by Noelle Degidio 20, Shrader in stroke, (7 seat) William Hooper 20, (6 seat) Tyler Sholl 18, (5 seat) Cressman, (4 seat) Spires, (3 seat) Griffin, (2 seat) Smith, and Mosey seated in the bow. The varsity and novice 4+ shells placed second in their respective races. The varsity boat featured coxswain Billingsley, stroke seat Gleim, (3 seat) Bush, (2 seat) Schafhausen, and Leitner-Wise, finished with a time of 7:09.44 narrowly behind Colgate who was merely three seconds quicker. The novice shell finished equally as well coming in second behind Temple by only two seconds. The lineup was made up of Degidio seated as coxswain, Spires at stroke, (3 seat) Cressman, (2 seat) Shrader, and Mosey in the bow. NCAA regulations state that women s crew teams can only practice and compete for nineteen weeks and between battling those NCAA rules, the graduation of four seniors the previous spring, and several injuries forcing the team to compete in a four, the Marietta College Women s team was still able to make the most of their opportunities on and off the water in the short fall season. The team, along with Head Coach Brad Hemmerly and Assistant Coach Theresa Alessio, decided to shorten the fall season to three weeks from the original five and redistribute the other two weeks earlier in the spring. Despite the short season, the women were able to put in three solid weeks of training and cap it off with a win at the Muskie Chase on the Muskingum River. The winning varsity four lineup was coxed by Jane Peterson 20 and sat Mandi Medykowski 19 in the stroke seat, followed by (3 seat) Marissa Jeswald 17, (2 seat) Makenzie McAfee 19, and Shelbi Westfield 17 in the bow. The four cruised to a comfortable 50 second victory ahead of Cincinnati and Dayton in the 6,000- meter race with a time of 28:37.7. Page 3

After over 40 years, the Lindamood-Vanvoorhis boathouse got the new look it deserved. The renovation totaled nearly a million dollars and was done in two separate phases with the first phase getting underway during the summer of 2015. This initial phase cost $220,000 and was comprised of stabilizing the original foundation, replacing existing mortar joints, new swinging bay doors, a set of galvanized steel steps to the second floor, a concrete ramp to the men s bay that replaced the old wood ramp, and improved lighting in all three bays. "The second floor is amazing and the first floor is as good as anything you'll see at a boathouse," former U.S. Olympic and Marietta rower John Strotbeck '79 said. "And let's not forget, we have the best river in the country to train on. Now we have everything you need." Phase two began as soon as the 2016 spring season ended in early May and was finished just in time for the return of alumni during homecoming week. With a $580,000 price tag, the second phase razed the second floor and constructed a second floor that covers the entire span of the boathouse, gambrel-style roofing, improved locker rooms for both teams on the second floor, a larger Dad Vail room, a meeting room, a huge training space that can hold up to 40 ergs, insulation and air conditioning for the training room, and new sliding racks for each bay. Page 4

Thanks to all the donors who made the renovation possible: Andrea Haynes Perry '82; The estate of Walter J. Strong '55; Brent C. '76 and Christine S. Haney; James Jr. '79, Barbara '79, Brittany '13 and James III '15 Metcalf; John '79 and Stephanie Strotbeck; The Elliott Thrasher '62 Family; Timothy J. Bennett '85; Lou "Cookie" '83 and Patricia Galletto; Frederic P. '69 and Etta S. Jaakkola; Marc R. '96 and Anita Ponchione; Kevin H. '85 and Christine Zernick Suter '84; James C. '86 and Sharon Brown Zeller '87; Robert C. Dufour '76; Jeffrey C. '77 and Susan S. Hugel; Jeffrey S. '77 and Susan S. Aichele; James R. Brinton '76; Jessica Buchholz Clemens '03 and Scott E. Clemens; Amanda R. Burtt '02; Christopher V. '78 and Beth L. Criss; Robert C. Elkins '78 and Laura Gray; Frederic C. '76 and Pamela Peterson Elliott '75; Kress R. Goldner '63; Marivic and Rodin Punsalan; James S. '69 and Cynthia Buck Wilson '70; Barbara E. Wolfinger '76 and Stuart Peskoe. Pictured here are the OVIRC winners. Senior Jack Gleim (Left) won the men s race with a time of 6:19.4 and Senior Marissa Jeswald (Right) claimed the women s title with a time of 7:44.9. Page 5

The Marietta Crew teams headed south to Gainesville, Georgia for their annual spring training trip. Despite rather unfavorable conditions and some illness, both teams battled through the adversity and were able to get in a solid week of training. The week concluded with race pieces against Ithaca College, University of Minnesota, and University of New Hampshire. The men s 1V8 was able to win their race and the 2V8 came in second to Minnesota. The women s V4+ also managed to do some informal scrimmages during break where they finished second to UMass Lowell. Page 6

Spring 2017 Schedule Knecht Cup: (April 8 th -April 9 th ) SIRA: (April 14 th -April 15 th ) MARC: (April 29 th ) Dad Vails: (May 12 th -May 13 th ) NCAA Division III National Championships (May 26 th -May 28 th )** IRA: (June 2 nd -June 4 th )* *Men s race only **Women s race only Page 7