Making History: Ocean City Girls Crew Team Shows Out on the National Stage

The Ocean City High School girls’ crew team just wrapped up a historic campaign at the SRAA National Championships, cementing their standing among the country’s elite rowing programs. For the first time in 17 years, and only the second time in program history, the Red Raiders advanced to the prestigious Grand Final of the Varsity 8+, representing South Jersey with pride on the sport’s biggest stage.

The Senior Eight: Joining the Ranks of National Powerhouses

 The Senior Eight entered the season with high expectations after winning the SRAA National Title in the Junior Eight the previous year. Stepping up to the varsity level, however, is an entirely different challenge.

“The senior eight is a special boat,” said head coach Colin Stewart, “they won the SRAA Nationals in the junior eight last year.” “The senior eight is a completely different game with the best athletes in the country competing. For them to step up and take the jump to that level and make it to the biggest stage in rowing is huge.”

“I think my proudest moment is when the senior eight crossed the finish line in their semifinal and had qualified for the final, knocking out our good friends and rivals from Jackson and Reed,” Stewart recalled. “A crew that a week before had beaten us in the Stotesbury final. We’ve got a good cup race where we pass a trophy back and forth when we race in the regular season. This year we beat them in Philly at the 3rd Manny Flick, so it was great to end the season beating them while also making our name in the Grand Final.”

Ocean City earned its place alongside legendary rowing programs. Racing down the stretch, they went head-to-head with perennial national powerhouses such as New Trier, Winter Park, Mount St. Joseph’s Academy, and Montclair.

“They added their name to that storied list,” Coach Stewart noted proudly.

Ultimately, the Senior Eight crossed the line to finish 5th in the Nation. The Senior Eight Lineup consisted of (Bow to Stern) Reese Hemberger, Kailyn Kelly, Marin Pearce, Marina Zappone, Jada Smith, Victoria Sakhno, Margot Swift, Aubrey Schlembach, and Harper Petitgout.

Freshmen Exceed All Expectations

 While the seniors provided veteran leadership, the Freshmen Eight pulled off an equally staggering feat. Despite having no rowing experience before the spring, the young crew rallied to finish 6th in the nation in their grand final.

“The freshmen eight all learned how to row in March and made the leap to compete against teams that have middle school rowing programs,” Stewart said. “It was an extraordinary feat for them to make up all that time that other teams were training as a unit and had put strokes together as a boat in the fall.” The Freshmen Eight Lineup includes (Bow to Stern): Taylor Dilucia, Holly Delong, Zoey Fasy, Ava Cera, Noelle Nnewihe, Gabby Doyle, Noelle McAnney, and Allie Garrabrant.

The Future: A New Standard is Set

 The historic weekend was a complete team effort. Along with the spectacular top-six finishes by the Senior and Freshmen Eights, the Second Eight finished 10th in the Nation, proving the immense depth of this year’s roster.

As the season draws to a close, the program bids farewell to an exceptional senior class that worked tirelessly to build Ocean City crew into what it is today. “Our senior eight will be survived by Aubrey Schlembach and Marin Pearce,” Stewart said. “We are losing 7 fantastic seniors out of that group.”

While those departing athletes have firmly put Ocean City back on the map, they leave behind a culture of excellence and elevated expectations for the underclassmen left holding the oars. “It’s your ship now.”

Looking ahead to next year, Coach Stewart knows the blueprint for success is already in place. “We know what it takes, and now we need to match our standards and goals for the next season.”