SARC Launches Fall Season

Under the direction of Team Director Nate Trythall, Saint Andrew Rowing Club will field a team of 107 rowers for the Fall 2006 season. Rowers come from 34 public and private schools in the Metro Atlanta Area. Athletes range from 8th to 12th grade, and the mix for this season is: (9) 8th grade, (24) freshman, (27) sophmores, (26) juniors, and (19) seniors. Go SA!!

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SARC Featured in Marietta Daily Journal Sports

The following article is from the MDJ online

All about the Crew

Cobb athletes aid St. Andrew's Rowing Club success

By Michael Morse Marietta Daily Journal Sports Writer
June 23, 2006

In the South, where football is king, rowing is a sport that is often overlooked.

Most high schools in Georgia do not field teams, but that does not mean that athletes who want to row do not have an outlet.

The St. Andrew's Rowing Club located in Roswell happens to field a club team for high school-aged kids who want to take up the sport. The club currently has about 115 members, including a number from Cobb County.

Last month, three senior members of the team - Peter Smith (Walton), Nancy Arrington (Pope) and varsity captain Nick Passarello (Pope) - attended the rowing nationals held in Cincinnati. Smith and Arrington made the trip as part of boats that had qualified and Passarello, who has competed at nationals before, went to support his fellow teammates.

St. Andrew's took about 25 members of the team to nationals this year, including its first-ever women's eight boat, which Arrington was a part of as at the stroke seat. Smith went with the men's lightweight eight and both boats competed against some of the top rowers in the country.

St. Andrew's had to make the top three in regionals in Tampa in order to advance to nationals. Not only did the team qualify a number of boats, it also took the overall points trophy at regionals out of 32 teams.

Head coach Dan McNair attended Lakeside High School in Evans, and as a freshman tried out rowing for the first time because he heard how hard the workouts were.

"I immediately fell in love with it," McNair said.

McNair went onto Wake Forest University, where he helped start a club rowing team there in 1998. After college, he received a job offer in Atlanta, and began to look for local rowing club teams. He found out about St. Andrew's began working with the team.

"Rowing is still an unfamiliar sport," McNair said. "We try to attract people through our summer programs that goes on for six weeks in June and July. For some kids they don't know what sport to play and they try out rowing and end up loving it."
Smith, Arrington and Passarello all have similar stories concerning how they got interested in rowing.

Smith played tennis and soccer before taking up rowing. Smith had an uncle and several friends who already rowed, so he went to rowing summer camp and found his sport. Smith has been a part of the St. Andrews team for four years.

Arrington went to the rowing competition during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics which piqued her interest.

"(After the Olympics,) I saw rowing on a show on T.V., and I said it looked fun," Arrington said. "My dad interpreted that as I wanted to do it so he helped find a team."

When Arrington took up the sport, she told her friends about it at school one of them being Passarello, who decided to try it out himself.

All three took to the sport and decided to dedicate their time and efforts to rowing. Their efforts have paid off and all plan to row in college. Arrington earned a rowing scholarship to the University of Texas and Smith and Passarello both plan to row at Trinity College in Connecticut and the University of Georgia, respectively.

McNair said rowing was the ultimate team sport and his team members have echoed that sentiment.

"It is very original compared to all other sports," Arrington said. "In rowing, every single person has to do the same thing, but there also has to be individuality."

When Arrington began rowing she had no idea it would lead her to a scholarship in college.

"The older people had told me that I would be would be good," Arrington said. "When I started to look at colleges, I thought this might help."

Smith felt the same way and once his sophomore year started he decided he would focus on trying to use rowing to get to college. Now he is heading off to a rowing team that was ranked 13th in the nation last year along with being ranked as the top Division-III team.

All three credits the coaches and their other team members for helping them get to levels they are at now.

"The coaches have been great the entire time," Passarello said.

St. Andrew's is currently in the middle of its summer camp season with camps continuing every week until the end of July. The camps are designed for people, ages 12-18, who have no experience or little experience in rowing to get a chance to check out the sport.

For more information about the team or upcoming camps visit www.standrewsrowing.com

SARC Featured in AJC Sunday Northside Section

The following article is from the AJC online (login required)

Glidin' along the river
Michael Carvell - Staff
Sunday, June 4, 2006

The St. Andrew Rowing Club, which consists of 115 students from 20 area high schools, is sending three teams to the U.S. Rowing National Youth Championships, to be held Friday through June 11 in Cincinnati. Three weeks ago, St. Andrew won the overall team title at the Southeast Youth Championship Regatta, finishing ahead of teams from Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, North Carolina and South Carolina.

St. Andrew coach Daniel McNair spoke with staff writer Michael Carvell about how the program has developed into a national contender.

Commitment
Rowing requires at least as much discipline as any other high school sport. Varsity members practice five to six days each week for a total of 10-12 hours. This past week, while training for nationals, some members had two-a-days, training on the Chattahoochee River at 5:30 a.m. and 5 p.m.

"You eat and sleep rowing six days a week," said Meg Hynd, a senior from Roswell High School. "It helps me become very disciplined in all areas of my life."

It's an enormous commitment because if one member of a team misses several practices, the timing and development of that group could be disturbed.

Coaching
McNair has been a coach at St. Andrew for six years, the past four as head coach. A former high school rower, he helped start a program at Wake Forest University. St. Andrew has eight coaches, most of whom have been around for several years. Said McNair: "With a lot of the coaches sticking around each year, everyone feels like we're one big family. Having the same coaches year after year builds consistency and momentum for our teams." Hynd credited the coaching for helping her earn a spot as a walk-on at Tennessee next year: "They are phenomenal. I was with [another rowing club], but since coming to St. Andrew my technique has improved and I'm much faster."

Top-notch equipment
St. Andrew shares a boathouse with Georgia Tech. Thanks to a lot of hard work by parents and alumni, St. Andrew has amassed a fleet of top boats. Said McNair: "We have the best shells and oars you can buy, as well as ample equipment for weight training, such as rowing machines." St. Andrew also has ideal access to a very secluded part of the river, which limits distractions during training.

Year-round schedule
St. Andrew has four seasons of participation each year, with a few off weeks between them. Many elite rowers enroll in all four. Said McNair: "Being able to get on the water any time during the year is a big advantage. If you go much further north, then the water can get frozen. We're very fortunate to have the climate that we do, and our kids are able to stay in great shape." Each session costs $300, but Pope sophomore Mikey Patinkin said he felt it was a good investment: "It's a necessary sacrifice because I love the sport so much. It's definitely worth every penny."

Open enrollment
St. Andrew is open to any student from any area high school. McNair said the only requirement is a "willingness to learn." The club has six one-week "Learn to Row" sessions during the summer. That's when potential rowers can decide whether they like the sport and want to join the team. Most current members heard about St. Andrew from older siblings or friends at school. Said Walton senior Peter Smith: "I had an uncle who rowed and a couple of friends who tried. I went to one of the summer camps, loved it and decided I was going to row."

Social event
St. Andrew is a great way to meet a lot of people from different high schools. The rowers spend countless hours together during practices and competition. Said Smith: "It's neat to meet people you would otherwise never run into." Smith said many of the rowers hang out together between the two-a-day practices. The team will often go out to eat together after a race.

Philosophy
St. Andrew is not all about the rowing. McNair said the club's goal is to develop the person first and then the rower: "This sport builds leadership skills, confidence and a self-awareness to be the best you can be in training. The focus is to be the best you can be today and be better than you were yesterday. If you learn habits like that, you will be successful in something."

Exposure
St. Andrew has established a reputation among colleges for turning out some of the Southeast's top prep rowers. Some of this year's rowers who will compete next year in college are Centennial's Meredith Razzolini (Clemson), Pope's Nancy Arrington (Texas), Centennial's Christine Fiacco (UCLA), Milton's Brittany Sehring (Tennessee), South Forsyth's Mike Gibel (Georgia Southern) and Roswell's Chris Blalock (Georgia Southern).

CHAMPIONSHIP CONTENDERS

Here are the three St. Andrew rowing teams that will compete in the U.S. Rowing National Youth Championships on Friday through June 11 in Cincinnati:

> Women's Youth 8+ (from stern to bow): Meredith Razzolini (Centennial), Nancy Arrington (Pope), Liz Robb (St. Francis), Maggie Daly (Roswell), Meg Hynd (Roswell), Christine Fiacco (Centennial), Meagan Swaim (Pope), Grace Rickenbaker (Holy Innocents'), Brittany Sehring (Milton). Alternate: Alex Gaigelas (Norcross). Coaches: Julie Miller and Marissa Weaver.

> Men's Youth Lightweight 8+ (from stern to bow): Mikey Patinkin (Pope), Peter Smith (Walton), Mike Gibel (South Forsyth), Connor Clark (Pope), Ryan Terrette (Milton), Chris Blalock (Roswell), Robert Arrington (Pope), Chase Powell (Blessed Trinity), Bryce Cross (Walton). Coaches: Dan McNair and Jenny McNair

> Men's Youth Lightweight 4+ (from stern to bow): Sara Banilohi (Pope), Sean Gibel (South Forsyth), Chris O'Connell (North Springs), Diego Ramirez (Centennial), John Seely (Walton). Alternate: Daniel Morillo (Blessed Trinity). Coach: Nate Trythall

CLUB WEB SITE
www.standrewrowing.com

Seventeen Seniors Leave SARC With Impressive Accomplishments

Congratulations to our seventeen graduating seniors! Their accomplishments both on the water and in the classroom has been impressive. Five rowers have been recruited to row with 3 securing rowing scholarships. Ten have earned academic scholarships to a variety of universities and colleges. As apparent by the list of schools and scholarships, this group of seniors continue the traditions of excellence at SARC.

Name	College	Comments
Nancy Arrington	University of Texas, Austin	Rowing Scholarship
Tia Bingham	University of Georgia, Athens	HOPE Scholarship
Chris Blalock	Georgia Southern	Academic Scholarship(engineering)
Misty Coombs	University of West Georgia	Yancy Scholarship
Melissa Danaceau	University of Alabama
Christine Fiacco	UCLA	Recruited to Row
Mike Gibel	Georgia Southern	HOPE Scholarship
Meg Hynd	University of Tennessee	Academic Scholarship
David Jacobson	US Military Academy (West Point)	Congressional Appointment
Tim Malone	Georgia Tech	Academic Scholarship
Molly Mara	Georgia Tech	Academic Scholarship
Garrett Markle	Jacksonville University, Florida	Rowing Scholarship
Nick Passarello	University of Georgia, Athens	Ramsey Scholarship
Meredith Razzolini	Clemson University	Rowing Scholarship
Morgan Pecora-Saipe	Princeton University	Academic Scholarship
Brittany Sehring	University of Tennessee
Peter Smith	Trinity College	Recruited to Row

Saint Andrew Rowing Club Wins 2006 Southeast Regional Championship and Sends Three Crews to Compete in the 2006 USRowing National Youth Championship

Athletes from Saint Andrew Rowing Club Sign National Letters of Intent

From Left to Right: Nancy Arrington, Meredith Razzolini, Coach Dan McNair

February 1, 2006 - Two local athletes, Nancy Arrington and Meredith Razzolini, signed National Letters of Intent to row for Division I Universities in the fall of 2006. They are members of the St Andrew Rowing Club of Roswell. These athletes are among the growing number of local high school women leveraging their dedication to academics and to athletics to secure rowing scholarships since the inception of Title 9.

Nancy, the daughter of Tom and Helen Arrington, attends A.C. Pope High School in Marietta. She is committed to row for the University of Texas, Austin. Nancy attended the USRowing Junior Development Camp and competed twice at the USRowing Youth National Invitational Championship. She was also recognized as a Honorable Mention member of US Rowing Junior Academic Honor Roll Team in October.

Meredith, the daughter of John and Megan Razzolini, attends Centennial High School in Roswell. She is committed to Clemson University, Clemson, S.C. Meredith competed twice at the USRowing Youth Nation Invitational Championship as a lightweight rower before converting to the position of coxswain to secure an opportunity to continue rowing at the collegiate level.

Director of Coaching at the 125 member club, Dan McNair, stated that “Our club fosters a competitive environment where colleges seek our athletes. This is largely because our program is designed to teach our athletes the traditions, discipline, and ethics of rowing as part of the overall objective to promote higher levels of development.” St. Andrew Rowing Club offers rowing to junior and high school athletes of all levels, starting at age 13.

About SARC:
The Saint Andrew Rowing Club is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting rowing, with emphasis on youth, in the Metro Atlanta area. Our rowers are drawn from over twenty public and private schools in the Metro Atlanta area. They are rowing with dedication, determination, and passion. Their reward is the sport itself. Saint Andrew rowers also work to excel scholastically as well as in their athletic commitment. Our boathouse is located at 675 Riverside Road behind the Saint Andrew Catholic Church on the Chattahoochee River in Roswell. Visit our website: www.standrewrowing.com

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