Boys and Girls Crew took on St. Paul’s School (St. Paul’s), Hingham, and Kent on May 3, claiming victory in all but one race. Despite long weather delays, the positive results of the race showcased improvements by novices and varsity rowers alike.
Throughout the day, races were interrupted by severe weather conditions, which, at one point, delayed the racing by four hours due to the risk of lightning. Despite the long delay, Vivien Valckx ’28 noted how Andover stayed focused and determined to race.
Valckx said, “For about four hours, we were sitting in the boathouse, and we couldn’t go out because there was lightning nearby. Kent had driven three and a half hours, and we didn’t want to send them back without a race, so we waited until about six or seven o’clock to race and got back very late. That was our biggest challenge with the lightning, but we overcame it well by staying focused throughout those hours off.”
When the boats got on the water, Andover claimed victory in all but one race. Although the race was only the third of the season, Andover achieved the same, near-perfect result in two of the three races it has competed in, a feat Head Coach Taylor Washburn has attributed to the consistent strength of novice and varsity boats alike, according to Owen Huang ’27.
“Something Coach Washburn says is that the top boats are fast because our bottom boats are fast. I feel like that’s true. Our bottom boats, especially the fifth and sixth boats, have been doing really well, pushing everyone to work harder to get their rowing to another level,” said Huang.
Nishi Amin ’28, who started Crew this year, noted how the race was a disappointment for the G5 boat, the only Andover boat not to claim a victory. Still, she shouted out teammate Brinley Davis ’27 for her supportive attitude.
“For more than half of the race, my boat was in the lead. Then, in the last 250 meters, St. Paul’s got in front of us and won. Our boat wasn’t working together well; it was super windy, and our oars were wet; it was hard to square and feather them. I want to highlight Brinley Davis ’27, because at the end of our race, we were all disappointed, but she told us all that we did a great job, and boosted our moods,” said Amin.
The Andover athletes showed physical and mental fortitude in continuing their race under challenging weather conditions and a four-hour delay. Huang highlighted the varsity boats’ performance.
Huang said, “Honestly, I want to shout out our whole team, especially our varsity crews, so that’s boats one, two, and three. Their races were scheduled for four o’clock, and they ended up starting at seven, three hours later. They were just waiting around for those three hours for the weather to pass, and throughout that, they all stayed motivated and focused, which I found impressive.”
Amin noted how the coaches for the crew program have worked to create a welcoming and resilient culture. She shared that this culture allows novice rowers to discover their love for the sport and varsity rowers to pursue excellence.
“Something that stands out about Andover Crew is that we have many great coaches who help rowers of all levels. It’s good because there are many novices and more experienced rowers. They create a space where we can all help each other,” said Amin.
Boys and Girls Crew will race Tabor and Exeter next Saturday.
