Season Preview: 2021 Michigan Rowing
3/4/2021 10:00:00 AM | Rowing
Michigan enters its 25th season of varsity competition under the leadership of head coach Mark Rothstein, and its 30th overall. Under Rothstein's direction, U-M has been first or second in the Big Ten in 11 of 19 seasons, capturing the program's sixth conference title at the most recent conference championships (2019). U-M will host two events this spring, with Texas coming to Belleville Lake in March, and Louisville and Iowa making the trek for Senior Day to close out the regular season in May.
Wolverine Bites
• While countless NCAA athletes were affected by the cancelation of the spring 2020 season, few lost as much as rowers. At Michigan in particular, this program was the only team to not begin competition last spring. While others competed in a few events and then saw events canceled, the rowing season never got started. This has left a group that is both hungry to compete and appreciative of every opportunity.
• When the Wolverines last competed, they reached a podium finish at the 2019 NCAA Championships (the team's second in three years) with all three boats in the Grand Final. U-M is poised to keep its presence known on the national stage with its seventh consecutive top-10 NCAA finish this spring.
• U-M earned top-four finishes in all three NCAA events in 2019. Two seasons later, the 2021 roster returns 11 athletes including six varsity eight athletes from that championship roster.
• U-M regained its place at the top of the Big Ten standings in May 2019, winning the sixth conference championship in program history and the first since 2012.
• The Wolverines are ranked No. 3 in the preseason edition of the Pocock Racing /CRCA Coaches Poll released on Wednesday (March 3).
• The Wolverines were ranked No. 6 in the 2020 preseason edition. When it comes to the early-season version of this poll, U-M has only been ranked outside the top 10 once in the last five years.
• With no fall season, the Wolverines trained hard off the water. Upon the start of the winter semester, the team was back on the water and has found creative ways to keep training at a high level despite not having their customary winter and spring training trips to warmer climates.
Breaking Down the Roster
• The Wolverines return 11 of 23 student-athletes from the 2019 NCAA Championships roster, including Pocock All-Americans Charlotte Powers (first team) and Madison Byrd (second team).
• Michigan's seniors number 17 with 13 fourth-year athletes: Kate Burns, Grace Collins, Ally Eggleton, Julia Gehlert, Megan Hinkle, Annika Hoffmann, Emma Luniewicz, Darien Moses, Charlotte Powers, Kendra Sanders, Noa Sreden, Taylor Toudouze, and Lara Vanderbilt, plus a quartet of fifth-year seniors: Tayla-May Bentley, Madison Byrd, Eliese Hornberger-Rocco, and Lilia Duncan.
• U-M returns 28 athletes from the 2019 Big Ten Championship team, including 18 from the five varsity boats (six, 1V8; four, 2V8; one, 1V4; four, 2V4; three, 3V4). Tayla-May Bentley and Madison Byrd (second team) return with conference accolades in tow.
• The roster includes nine true freshmen in total, with a large number of newcomers hoping to make a splash with the varsity roster. Look out for Zara Collisson, Abigail Dent, Delaney Evans, and Sarah McKay in particular.
• Junior Jeri Rhodes competed as part of Team USA at the U23 World Rowing Championships in summer 2019, winning a bronze medal in the 8+.
• Two South African Wolverines competed internationally as well. Junior Jessica Schoonbee and senior Tayla-May Bentley rowed for South Africa in the World Rowing Championships, placing fourth in the C Final at the senior level after earning a silver medal at the U23 level.
• This is a group that is just as impressive in the classroom as they are on the water. Last year, U-M boasted 44 Academic All-Big Ten honorees, an improvement from 33 the year before. Annika Hoffmann was the Elite 90 Award Winner for all of NCAA Division I rowing at the 2019 championships.
• Student-athletes were not the only ones to collect awards the last time the Wolverines were competing: the coaching staff was named 2019 Region 4 Staff of the Year, and head coach Mark Rothstein was named Big Ten Coach of the Year for the fifth time in his career.
2021 Schedule
• U-M has six competition weekends on the docket this spring, giving the team a busier slate than in recent seasons.
• The 2021 schedule begins in Oak Ridge, Tenn., where the team will compete for the third year in a row. After a spring training trip to the location in 2020, the team will be in familiar territory for this year's Cardinal Invitational.
• A pair of weekend trips to Columbus, Ohio, close March and open April before the team hosts its first event of the spring, a single-day event against Texas.
• The Wolverines then return to Ohio for the Big Ten Invitational before a weekend off.
• The regular season closes with Louisville and Iowa coming to Belleville Lake for U-M's senior day celebration.
• The season's Big Ten Championships (May 16) return to Baraboo, Wis., where U-M won the conference crown two springs ago.
Players Mentioned
