With the Head of the Genesee regatta under their belt, the Oswego State crew team is almost halfway through their fall racing season. The team will compete at the Head of the Niagara and Wright regatta in Buffalo this coming Sunday, Oct. 16.

Newly-hired head coach Matt Stufano calls this race the team’s “dress rehearsal” for the Oct. 29 Head of the Fish regatta in Saratoga, which is the team’s biggest race of the season. The team is preparing for the race with practices and workouts on land and in the water.

“Racing can be hard, and preparing for a race like the Fish is intense,” Varsity rower Stephanie Beaumont said. “But, it’s also rewarding. All the morning practices and land practices, the sore muscles and blisters – it all becomes worth it once you’re in the race.”

Coach Stufano is a graduate student at Oswego State University. He is working to “continue upon the success of previous semesters” to increase the competitive rigor of the team, and he hopes to bring home some medals in the upcoming races.

“We are focusing on technique and practice as much as possible,” Stufano said. “Once the technique comes, then the power comes. Once the power comes, we win races.”

Stufano rowed for the Oswego State crew team for four years before he was hired as coach, and served as captain and as the club’s president in years past. His dedication to the team does not go unnoticed.

“Coach Stufano, not a stranger to rowing, is doing an amazing job,” varsity rower Zak Melite said. “He allocates his free time to getting all rowers on the water for further development and pushing our varsity team to the next level.”

The team is working together under Stufano, who emphasizes both the individual and team aspects of crew. New and returning members describe a powerful camaraderie that motivates them when the going gets tough.

“For the first few weeks, I hated going to crew,” Cayden Wirchansky said. “I thought I wouldn’t be good enough for the team. As the weeks went on I began to feel more connected with the team. After a month, I feel like I have made so much improvement and I absolutely adore crew.”

The team’s excellent chemistry pushes each individual to strive for peak performance.

“I started crew last year at a rough point in my life,” varsity rower Allison Carpenter says. “I joined for the workout time, but ended up loving the sport and all the people even more. We’re always there for each other.”

The fall season means long, winding race courses of 5,000 to 7,000 meters, placing an emphasis on endurance workout. For the Oswego State crew team this means running 5Ks around the college campus and completing long sets on the indoor rowing machines called ergs in Lee Hall. Rowers are expected to be on the water two to three times a week and attend land workouts up to five times per week.

It can be challenging to carry out these workouts in a place like Oswego, where the weather does not cooperate, but that does not stop this team.

“Oswego is a rough place to row due to the high winds and lake effect weather,” Noah Kasman said. “We face these challenges with optimism and I think that’s why our team is so tight. We make due with what we have, and we don’t get discouraged.”

The sweat, lake water and tears are sure to pay off this season.