Last year, the crew team set a standard when they sent multiple boats to nationals. This year, they look to keep up with the standard. The team is led by captains, and twins, Caroline and Sam Logan. Having been on the team for multiple years, and some of the best rowers on the team, the team is set to have great leadership.

“Last year was great. Although I wasn’t on the boat that went to nationals, going to Canada was still fun and I hope we get to do that again.” Sophomore Logan Tiggleman commented on how he wanted a repeat of last season.

They have pretty high standards to live up to but even if they don’t make it they still do some fun things besides that like the Canada trip. It is safe to say team members are looking forward to the season ahead.

Last year was a good year for FHC crew to say the least, however, this year may be a little different with the loss of a couple of key seniors: Kevin McPoland and Roman Kalaczinski. The team has a solid core of members from all grade levels and always has people stepping up and replacing graduating members. The goal for this team is to have more depth all the way around as well. Last year, they only sent a couple of boats to nationals, this year they are looking to go as a team.

One issue with crew being a spring sport is the weather. For a lot of the season, the team is indoors having ergattas on weekends on the rowing machines. This can be very demotivating to team members as it can be repetitive and hard to stay focused. Junior Joey Sitarski commented on this struggle stating, “It’s hard to practice indoors. It makes it really hard to stay motivated but in the end, it makes going outdoors that much better.” The Crew team is looking forward to the water races, with expectations to win them.

Senior captain Sam Logan spoke on how he looks to use his experience to help lead the team this year, “I’m going to try and show up consistently and lead by example and also use our skills to help underclassmen and create a good environment for everyone.”

The team is looking good athlete-wise as well as leader-wise. The team is very good, so there isn’t a ton of competition locally for them. However, Rockford can prove to be a tough team to beat so they will be a true test to see what this FHC team has in them. The team’s first indoor ergatta is Saturday, March 25, in the FHC gym.