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08/02/2017 12:00 AMThe Valley Regional crew truly came into its own during the 2017 spring season. Just one year after borrowing boats and oars from the Lyme-Old Lyme crew, the Warriors had their own equipment thanks to a generous donation from area businessman Bart Gullong, as well as a fundraiser organized by the Valley Crew Booster Club that yielded thousands of dollars which went toward the purchase of equipment. As a result, Valley had the freedom to compete at regattas without having to follow the Lyme-Old Lyme crew or borrowing its gear.
In turn, the Warriors saw tremendous improvement compared to their previous seasons as they finished fourth for the Perry Trophy in the Connecticut Public Schools Rowing Association’s (CPSRA) championship held on Lake Waramaug in Kent. Valley also competed in several New England Interscholastic Rowing Association (NEIRA) regattas this year. In the end, Head Coach John Laundon felt that Valley Regional crew took a huge step in the right direction during the recent season.
“The results were phenomenal. We won a number of races. We only had one or two losses in terms of being last in the event,” said Coach Laundon. “It was day and night compared to the year before, and the really good news is we only have one senior leaving. The season was a phenomenal success compared to where we had been.”
Valley Regional’s crew roster consisted of senior captain Liza Miezejeski and fellow senior Brisa Bragança; along with juniors Electra Cassells and Chloe Grabowski; sophomores Kimberly Berardis, Caitlin Bouchard, Mia D’Agostino, Rachel Dona, Allie Gilbert, Emily Hutchinson, Maddy Just, Tessa LeMay, Chelsea Martinson, Maddy Meyer, Sabrina Nucci, Lily O’Neil, Maaren Quale, Courtlin Sicignamo, Jenna Talbot, and Sage Tisdale; plus freshmen Emma Carey, Awdrie Carnelli, Iris Chirinos, Kelly Littler, and Eric Vilcheck. Coach Laundon’s assistant coaches were Caroline Muhsin, Emily Powers, and Renny Schoonmaker.
One of the biggest keys to the Warriors’ improvement was the way they performed in practice. With new equipment that included indoor rowing machines, the team put in the work to get stronger throughout the winter, although there’s no better way for a rower to learn than being on the water. While it can be challenging to get adequate practice time during the spring in New England, Coach Laundon did everything he could to put his athletes in the best position to succeed in their competitions.
“The spring season is so short, and weather is always a factor,” Laundon said. “What I try to do in the first couple of weeks is force everyone to row on their opposite side of the boat. A lot of high school kids start rowing on one side, and they get stuck. So they don’t like it, but they come back to me years later saying they’re glad we did it.”
Something else that’s important to Laundon is that his crew works in smaller boats in order to have a better feel for how to move over the water. Many schools run with eight-rower boats, but the Warriors’ forte is boats that have four rowers. Although that can make it harder for Valley to match up against other schools since there are only a handful who run fours, Coach Laundon believes that it’s important to keep using them to help his rowers prepare for the next level.
“The more time they spend in smaller boats, the better rowers they’ll be, no matter what boat they get in later on,” he said. “It’s just a lot more sensitive. Everything is emphasized in terms of your senses and balance.”
Valley isn’t exclusively a four-boat crew, but the Warriors mostly use their eight boats to help newcomers acclimate themselves to rowing. Once rowers get a feel for the water, they typically end up in one of the fours. Coach Laundon often sees his newer athletes improve quickly while they focus on practicing and competing with the fours. That also means the rowers in each boat are often shuffled around throughout the season.
“What happens is you may get a freshman who is incredibly athletic and skilled, but has never rowed before, and they pick it up immediately and should really be in the first boat,” said Laundon. “So there’s constant change in the boats as the season goes on.”
A similar circumstance occurred this year with first-year rower Kimberly Berardis, who wound up earning the Warriors’ Most Improved Player Award in her sophomore season.
“Kimberly, she never rowed before and happens to be a swimmer in the winter,” Laundon said. “As the season went on, she improved a lot and ended up in the second boat.”
It’s not just the rowers in the boat, though. One of the most important parts of any quality crew is the coxswain, which is the person who is in charge of the boat and controls its steering. Valley had one coxswain for each of its six boats in sophomores Courtlin Sicignamo, Sage Tisdale, Jenna Talbot, and Maureen Quale; along with freshmen Awdrie Carnelli and Eric Vilcheck.
Laundon said that the coxswain can make a huge difference in the performance of the boat and added there are several characteristics that go into selecting who holds that role.
“A good coxswain can make a huge difference, and so can a bad one,” Laundon said. “The smaller, the better, in terms of size. You want a personality that’s aggressive, outgoing, and has an attitude. It’s someone that really wants to take charge and command the boat, but that has to be tempered. You don’t want someone out there screaming all day. There are two things that you don’t want: a coxswain who never stops talking, and a coxswain that never says anything.”
Coach Laundon hopes to bring in more boys to try out next spring as Vilcheck was the only one on this year’s crew. That would mean Valley could have additional boats competing in more races throughout the season. Either way, Laundon feels optimistic about the future of this program and is looking for the Warriors to qualify for both the CPSRA and NEIRA championships in 2018. Laundon has seen increased interest in crew at Valley Regional High School, and he knows that bodes well for the program.
“I think we’re looking forward to having a phenomenal year coming back. We’re losing only one person. A lot of kids are rowing over the summer, and we’ll work over the winter to improve too,” said Laundon. “It’s amazing when I drive around town and everyone is aware of the rowing team, and that certainly wasn’t the case a year ago.”