Catholic University Cardinals rowing teams represent the

Catholic University Cardinals The Catholic University of America's intercollegiate sports teams are called the ''Cardinals'' (after the bird northern cardinal), and they compete in the NCAA's Division III. They are members of the Landmark Conference, the New England Women's a ...

in men's and women's intercollegiate

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically ...

History

Club (1990-2018)

The program was founded as a club called The Catholic University of America Rowing Association (CUARA) and competed in the Mid-Atlantic Region of the

American Collegiate Rowing Association American Collegiate Rowing Association (ACRA) is one of the governing bodies of college rowing in the United States, together with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA). History Estab ...

. The club was established at the beginning of the spring semester 1990 by Laurie McGuane, an architecture major from

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

who transferred to

The Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Roman Catholic research university in Washington, D.C. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by U.S. ...

after her freshman year at

Loyola Marymount University Loyola Marymount University (LMU) is a private Jesuit and Marymount research university in Los Angeles, California. It is located on the west side of the city near Playa Vista. LMU is the parent school to Loyola Law School, which is located ...

in Los Angeles. Disappointed that CUA did not have a rowing club, she decided to start one. In January 1990, the Crew Club was granted official club status by the university. The spring semester of 1990 was devoted to organizing the club, starting fund-raising, and making contacts with the Washington rowing network. The first coaches were Glenn Harchar and Bob Shuttleworth, who both coached for Capital Rowing Club at Thompson’s. The following year (1991–92), with Laurie McGuane still president, Gregory Rubbo VP, Chris McBride "purser," and Meg Murphy, secretary, Glenn continued to serve as coach of the novice women, Ed McCormick coached our men, and Bill our varsity women. In the spring semester, Doug Sanders, who was a grad student in physics at CUA, became the coach of all our crews. In 1992-93, Joe Creed started coaching. In the 1996-97 season, the Women’s Novice Eight, stroked by Rosanna Brunelli, became the first crew in CUARA history to win a gold medal. They won the Bill Braxton Regatta, beating

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

, and

UConn The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from ...

. In the fall of 2002, John and Bridgette Dziedzic joined as assistant coaches and became head coaches of the men's and women's teams, respectively, after Joe Creed resigned. The team had a rebuilding year. The 2004 Spring Season was the most successful year, to date, for the team. The Men's Four (Alan Van Epps, Matt Starr, Brian Flynn, Mark Freibott and James Hood) had a strong showing, winning gold at Occoquan Sprints and the St. Mary's Seahawks Regatta. The Varsity Lightweight Women's Four (Catherine Mancusi, Stephanie Callaghan, Erin Curry, Jackie Racicot, and Lindsay Capidulupo) won three medals (gold at Knecht Cup and St. Mary's Seahawks Sprint and bronze at the Mid-Atlantic Championship Regatta; in addition to a second-place finish at the Occoquan Sprints). In 2008 the team was in decline due to lack of interest by the student body and a lack of commitment by members of the team. The team fell under the direction of James Augone, as Coaches John and Bridgette Dziedzic resigned after six years to start their family. Coach Augone formerly rowed at

Iona College Iona University is a private Roman Catholic university with a main campus in New Rochelle, New York. It was founded in 1940 by the Congregation of Christian Brothers and occupies a campus of in New Rochelle and a campus of in Bronxville, ...

in New Rochelle, New York. In the 2011-2012 rowing season Sally O'Connor took over as head coach and in March 2012 Ryan Gillis became the new president. The team is showing promise under the new leadership and in the fall of 2012 posted a respectable finish at the Bill Braxton Regatta taking 2nd in the Men's Novice 4+ only to Temple University. The winter season was seen to have played out nicely for the once again thriving team. After the generous support of Catholic U and various other contributors the team was able to purchase an

Empacher Empacher (company name Bootswerft Empacher GmbH) is a manufacturer of boats. Today, they produce racing shells for the sport of rowing. History Originally building sailing yachts, Willy Empacher founded his boatyard with Wilhelm Karlisch duri ...

8+ from the US Rowing National Team. Preparations were made to make way for the return of the once annual Capitol Crew Classic Regatta, which, according to University records, was last hosted by The Catholic University of America Rowing Association in 2005 with a total of 13 collegiate level teams in attendance.

Varsity Program (2018-Present)

In 2018, the club transitioned into men's and women's varsity programs. Katie O'Driscoll was hired to lead the transition and take the helm of the Division III varsity programs. Catholic University subsequently joined the Mid-Atlantic Rowing Conference (MARC), with the men's team also participating in the

Intercollegiate Rowing Association The Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) governs intercollegiate rowing between varsity men's heavyweight, men's lightweight, and women's lightweight rowing programs across the United States, while the NCAA fulfills this role for women's ope ...

The Cardinals first appearance at the Mid-Atlantic Rowing Conference (MARC) Championships was 2019. In 2022, Catholic University Men's Rowing participated in the Men's Coxed Four event at the

National Championships, finishing sixth in the fourth level final.

Coaches

* Bob Shuttleworth 1990-1991 * Glenn Harchar 1990-1992 * Ed McCormick 1991-1992 * Doug Sanders 1992 * Joe Creed 1992-2002 * John and Bridgette Dziedzic 2002-2008 * James Augone 2008 * Tim Pineau 2010 * Kevin McNamara 2010 * Ben Newell 2010 * Beth Gordon 2012 * Sally O’Connor 2012–2017 * Katie O'Driscoll 2019-Present

Mid-Atlantic Rowing Conference Championships

No event was held in 2020 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championships

References

External links

CUA rowing
{{Mid-Atlantic Rowing Conference navbox Catholic University Cardinals College rowing teams in the United States Sports clubs and teams established in 1990 1990 establishments in Washington, D.C. Mid-Atlantic Rowing Conference