Dallas, TX - Dallas United Crew (DUC), celebrated on May 20th at their season ending banquet, dubbed Bow Ball – a play on the name of the rubber guard that protects the point on the bow of a racing shell. The gathering commemorates a year of historic success, honors the Class of 2023, and recognizes exemplary contributors.

A year-in-review video revisited the team’s competition at regattas in Oklahoma City, Austin, Waco, Seattle and Boston, and climaxed with coaches Xavier Aniton and Yahia Eldeib running, trophy held aloft to present the team with its first ever USRowing Central Regional Team Points title, this time for the Women’s category. A chorus of, “DUC! DUC” greeted their delivery. USRowing’s Central Region Championship concluded DUC’s competitive year. In regional competition, the team medaled in sixteen of twenty-two entered events, taking gold in four. Ninety-five individual medals were awarded. High winds canceled the majority of DUC’s races Sunday, awarding medals based on Saturday’s time trials and denying rowers head-to-head matchups. Austin Brooks (Executive Director & Interim Boy’s Head Coach) “We have been really focused on overall team success and building our system of success through the program. Athlete development is the key to climbing the national rankings and one day becoming National Champions. We have to keep building from the bottom up!”

Bow Ball celebrations continued with individual awards for outstanding athletes and recognition of DUC’s graduating class. Once again, more than half of DUC’s seniors will matriculate to NCAA or IRA Division I rowing programs. Underscoring how rowing can change the trajectory of a teen's life, oarsman Kate Russ rowed just one year at DUC and was recruited to the University of Washington, a perennial collegiate rowing powerhouse. Teammate, Ty Koran, left football in the spring of 2022 to row with DUC and landed a spot on the University of San Diego’s heavyweight men’s roster.

Among the awards, DUC recognized seventeen varsity letter winners from schools including Bishop Lynch, Highland Park, Hillcrest, Southlake and Woodrow where the school’s athletic department has partnered with the organization. DUC actively embraces opportunities to partner and augment in-school athletic opportunities with rowing and is an Approved Agency for Off Campus P.E. Credit at most schools.

As the regular season concludes, DUC is still training. Six DUC boats qualified for and will race at USRowing’s Youth National Championship in Sarasota, FL on June 8th - 11th. DUC invites all youth rowers to train at its High Performance Development Program; the focus will be improved technique, fitness gains, and building speed to compete at USRowing Club National Regatta in Bethel, OH mid-July. 

For those new to rowing who would like to try the sport, Dallas United Crew offers summer camps in June and July to boys and girls in grades 6-12. This is where Kate Russ started! Those who want to keep rowing funnel into DUC’s Intermediate Development Program to prepare for advanced rowing in the fall. Visit www.DallasUnitedCrew.org to learn more.

Bow Ball Awards 

Oarlock Award: Nora Thompson

MVP: Jack Craycroft, Nora Thompson

The Hammer: Jack Halverson, Paisley Rodriguez

Coaches Award: Ryan Brown, Kate Russ

Most Improved: Clark Hobbs, Madelyn Vela 

Gold Nugget: Lisette Viguerie, Nathan Wivagg

Rising Star: Kayla Quiroga

Eight in the Eight:

• Zeynep Akdora
• Jack Craycroft
• Jack Haney
• Sierra Ross
• Nora Thompson

Varsity Letter Awards:

• Zeynep Akdora
• Luke Blankenship
• Jack Craycroft
• Claire Dwelle
• Cole Farley
• JackHaney
• Coleman Hays
• Clark Hobbs
• Josh Lando
• Lauren O’Grady
• Paisley Rodriguez
• Sierra Ross
• Matthew Slear
• Daniel Sneed
• Estelle Stout
• Olivia Till
• Nora Thompson

Cornerstone Athletes: 

• Cole Farley
• Matthew Slear
• Olivia Till

DUC Class of 2023

• Zeynep Akdora, attending Smith College
• Jack Craycroft, attending University of Oklahoma
• Jack Haney, attending University of Miami
• Ty Koran, recruited to University of San Diego
• Sierra Ross, recruited to Boston College
• Kate Russ, recruited to University of Washington
• Nora Thompson, recruited to Monmounth University

USRowing Central Region DUC Medalists: 

Gold

• M2V8+: Jack Davis, John Bunge, Owen Frazer, Alexander Musico, Aidan Morris, Mauro Quiroga, Jack Haney, Coleman Hayes, Jeff Kang (Cox)
• WU178+: Diana Farnworth, Mary Hall, Elisabeth Viguerie, Julia Blewett, Juliana Stimac, Madelyn Vela, Hannah Birdwell, Ella Spillman, Erin Yuan (Cox)
• W2-: Sierra Ross, Olivia Till
• WU174+:  Julia Blewett, Julia Stimac, Yaya Lagisetty, Mimi Tafel, Riya Venkatesh (Cox)

Silver

• M1V8+*: Luke Blankenship, Raul Gupta, Jack Halverson, Daniel Sneed, Clark Hobbs, Julien Balestri, Cole Farley, Matthew Slear, Jack Craycroft (Cox)
• M1V4-: Luke Blankenship, Raul Gupta, Cole Farley, Matthew Slear
• M1V4+:  Jack Davis, Jack Halverson, Daniel Sneed, Clark Hobbs, R. Brown (Cox)
• MU174+: Julian Balestri, John Bunge, Theo Statiras, Henry Thompson, Tyler Koo (Cox)
• WU15 4x+*: Ella Bates, Hedda Beck, Thalia Makris, Talia Taback, Kayla Quiroga
• W2V8+: Ella Noonan, Zoe Greene, Olivia Knight, Caroline Mazat, Emma Lopez, Estelle Stout, E Conley, Lente Van der Westhuizen, Nikita Malik (cox)

Bronze

• W1V8+*: Sierra Ross, Olivia Till, Zeynep Akdora, Kathryn Russ, Lauren O’ Grady, Paisley Rodriguez, Victoria Bell, Nora Thompson, Claire Dwelle(cox)
• W1V4-: Victoria Bell, Paisley Rodriguez, Kate Russ, Nora Thompson
• MU178+*: Theodore Statiras, Henry Thompson, Bryan Pletcher, Luka Anderson, David Guo, Louis Hixon, Luke Bodwell, Yiyoung Liu, Tyler Koo (cox)
• M2-: Jack Haney, Joshua Lando
• MU15 4x+*: Hayden Phan, Anton Jordanoff, Kieran Webb, Tyler Coke, Gigi De La Torre (cox)

Seattle, WA – For the first time in program history, on March 25^th, select crews of Dallas United Crew (DUC) raced in the 2023 Husky Open, trying their speed on the course made famous in author Daniel Brown’s best-seller, Boys in the Boat. The course is home to University of Washington’s (UW) storied men’s and women’s open-weight squads, holding twenty-three national championships, the most for any team in both categories. 

DUC’s varsity men’s and women’s oarsmen competed for a spot on the travel squad, qualifying with one of the top twenty-four times on a 2,000-meter ergometer test, a measure of their winter training outcomes. Friday’s warm-up row rewarded them with an introduction to the course. DUC launched from UW Conibear Shellhouse, looped Lake Washington’s Union Bay past a state-of-the-art starting platform parallel to the 520 Bridge, bisected the Montlake drawbridge, and finished in Lake Union’s Portage Bay, surrounded by Seattle’s iconic houseboats. Most of the race traverses Montlake Cut, a man-made canal linking the two lakes, whose bulkheads bear painted claims and challenges of UW’s legendary crews. Observers noted the oarsmen’s difficulty keeping their eyes in the boat.

Saturday’s races saw fans line both sides of the Cut and the overhanging Montlake Bridge, creating an atmosphere akin to rowing through a stadium. DUC faced-off against the best of the Northwest, with DUC’s Varsity Men taking gold in the First Varsity (1V) Four and edged out of a medal in the 1V Eight by hundredths of a second. The DUC men showed the depth of their program with bronze in the 2V Eight and Silver in the 3V Eight. 

Austin Brooks DUC Interim Head Men’s Coach reflects, “As an alumni to the University of Washington rowing program myself I know what a true testament it is to stay focused while you have hundreds of fans cheering your name. Our athletes did a great job of being in the moment and racing to their fullest. We learned a lot and have a strong focus heading into Championship season.” 

Off the water, younger DUC rowers toured UW’s campus while upperclassmen toured the athletic facilities. DUC rowers learned about life as a collegiate rower – an important insight when rowing for a club with seventy-five Division 1 recruits. Kate Russ is the first DUC Rower recruited to UW. Russ tried rowing last year at one of DUC’s Learn-to-Row Summer Camps. A year of training with DUC’s Ben Andrews will have her training in the shadow of The Husky Clipper, the 1936 Olympic Gold Medal boat.

“I never heard of rowing before seeing a DUC flyer and signing up for a summer rowing camp. Now fast-forward six months and I’m a recruited rower to one of the most historic Division 1 rowing programs in the nation. Who would have thought? I can’t thank DUC and the amazing coaches enough for all their help,” says Russ. 

DUC’s popular Learn-to-Row Summer Camps are open for registration. No prior experience or equipment is necessary; DUC will teach you. Camps are four consecutive mornings from 9-11 am, starting each Monday. Choose from five sessions. Visit DallasUnitedCrew.org to learn more. Early sign-up is recommended as space is limited and camps fill-up early.

Dallas, Texas – Dallas United Crew raced and won big at S.W.E.A.T (Southwest Amateur Ergometer Tournament), hosted by Jesuit College Preparatory School. In these races, the ergometer, a rowing machine, measures each performance to project the entrant’s standing as a boat moving across a combined, virtual course. Past performance lands the fastest of each heat on the front row, blinding them to their positions while signaling that they are the ones to beat. Teammates act as coxswains – sometimes pilot, sometimes drill sergeant, and sometimes cheerleader – to get their oarsman first to the finish. As the lead boats cross the 1500-meter mark of the 2000-meter race, a tsunami of cheers washes over the competitors as the crowd demands a winning sprint.

The high school events presented the most crowded fields with over forty athletes competing in each of the men’s and women’s open-weight races. DUC’s varsity men claimed gold in the fastest events with Danield Sneed winning the Men’s Open-weight Single and DUC’s varsity men dominating with eleven of the top fifteen places. The Lightweight Men’s Single also saw gold for DUC as Jack Craycroft led the field. In the women’s open-weight race, Sierra Ross, and teammate Kate Russ earned 2 of the top 5 finishes, and Ella Spillman took silver among the Freshman Lightweight Women. DUC’s future looks bright as Spillman’s open-weight teammates and the girls of DUC’s middle school program swept the medals in both of their categories. Not to be outdone by their oarsmen, the DUC coxswains took to the ergometers, earning three medals, including gold for Mimi Tafel.

With 85 entries, DUC had more competitors than any other juniors program and earned fourteen individual medals. In a sport whose hallmark is unity, the competition is a rare opportunity to shine individually. Collegiate coaches scan the published results searching for fast recruits.

Program-wide, DUC won seventeen medals as DUC’s Veterans/Adapative rowers John Fay and Sam Seidemann took gold and silver, respectively, in their event. Former DUC Board Member, Chuck Mueller, who founded DUC’s Veterans/Adaptive program took silver in the Men’s Masters Single for ages 70-79.

S.W.E.A.T is DUC Junior’s first competition of spring’s championship season; warmer weather will see North Texas’s largest rowing club race in 2000-meter sprints at regattas in Oklahoma City, Austin, and Seattle in preparation for the nationally qualifying races at US Rowing’s Central Regionals in May. 

S.W.E.A.T draws rowers from ten juniors clubs in US Rowing’s Central Region. Teens who would like to row are invited to register for DUC’s middle school program starting March 1st or one of several rowing camps this summer. Visit www.DallasUnitedCrew.org for details on each program.

Oklahoma City, OK - After a long, hot summer of training Dallas United Crew’s (DUC) Varsity crews are ready to race. The Head of the Oklahoma, now in its eighteenth year, is the traditional start of regional racing and draws teams from as far as Houston, California and Wisconsin. Unique to this venue, the top six crews in marquee events qualify to race at OG&E’s Night Sprints, an electrified, high-velocity, five-hundred-meter dash.

The daytime, four-thousand-meter course winds through eleven bridges, including that of a working railway and Interstate 35. Coxswains must navigate the shortest possible course, passing slower boats without yielding time; imprecise steering or poor planning can cost the race.

In the Varsity Boys races, the Fours race foreshadowed the marquee event, the Eights. DUC’s Fours took silver and bronze mere seconds behind regional rival, Jesuit Prep’s first Four. DUC’s Eight is a young, but accomplished crew, having earned bronze in the under-seventeen category at Head of the Charles last year. The first of three DUC Eights, they beat Jesuit by five seconds to qualify for Night Sprints.

In the Varsity Girls head races, DUC’s crews had their hands full. The five-time USRowing Central Regional Champions took bronze in the Fours and the Eights, yielding gold in both events to an emerging powerhouse, Austin Rowing Club (ARC). 

As the lights came up on Night Sprints, the mood became festive as thoughts of stamina and perseverance were washed away by the anticipation of all-out speed. Rowers donned face paint and wrapped their biceps in glow-rings in celebration. New this year, crossing the finish line triggered a fan of fireworks to hail the victor. 

DUC’s Varsity Girls delivered the upset of the night, overtaking ARC’s top Eight in the last one hundred meters to win by a mere four-tenths of a second. Pyrotechnics rewarded their determination. In the Boys Eight, DUC fended off two determined Jesuit crews to take gold by a full deck. Again, fireworks boomed for the crews in blue.

Next up for DUC’s Varsity crews is Head of the Charles River (HOCR) in Cambridge, MA. HOCR is the world’s largest regatta, notorious for the difficulty of its course. Competition is by invitation only. 

Dallas United Crew is North Texas's largest and most successful youth rowing team with thirty six regional titles and seventy one collegiate recruits. Comprised of over one hundred rowers DUC draws from more than twenty-five area high schools. For more information, visit www.DallasUnitedCrew.org

Oklahoma City, OK - Dallas United Crew (DUC) added seven regional titles, including those of Rowing’s fastest events – the Girls and Boys Eights – to its legacy. Held May 7th and 8th, the USRowing Central Youth Championship is one of seven regional qualifiers for USRowing’s National Youth Championship to be held in Sarasota, FL June 11th through 14th.

As nearly eight hundred athletes representing twenty-four clubs from Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas gathered in the OKC Boathouse District, the expected racing format was time trials (tandem starts for the best time) on Saturday in which the top six crews would qualify to compete in head-to-head finals over the two-thousand-meter course. The weather did not cooperate. Winds picked up Saturday afternoon, gaining strength overnight with gusts between 25 and 35 mph on Sunday. Such conditions are unsafe, especially for crews in windward lanes. By mid-morning, officials canceled the finals, and Saturday’s time trials now decide the winners. DUC’s coaches prepared their crews and race strategies with Sunday’s forecast and its likely impact in mind. 

Four-time defending champions in the Eights the DUC Varsity Girls knew they faced a challenge at regionals. Having won prior match-ups, Austin’s Texas Rowing Center (TRC), was seeded first in the Girls Varsity Eights, ahead of DUC. Despite a slower lane assignment, the DUC girls surpassed expectations, laying down a one-second faster time than TRC and claiming their fifth consecutive title. DUC’s Varsity Four, powered by three of four oarswomen from DUC’s 2021 Youth Nationals top-ten crew, bested the field by a whopping twenty seconds – the equivalent of seven boat-lengths.

This year saw the DUC Varsity Boys return to the top of the podium in the Eights. They turned the tide with a blazing 5:49 down the course, besting the field by a definitive six seconds. DUC’s Under Seventeen (U17) Boys, having placed in the top ten at Youth Nationals in 2021, crushed the field, finishing ten seconds ahead of the second place crew.

DUC, the largest rowing team in North Texas with athletes hailing from 26 schools, showed the depth of its crews, taking gold in three additional events: The Boys Under Sixteen (U16) Eight, the Girls Under Fifteen (U15) Coxed-quad and the Boys U17 Eight for a momentous fifty-one individual gold medals. DUC earned silver medals in the Boys Second Varsity Eight, Girls U17 Eight, Boys U15 Coxed-quadruple and Girls U17 Four, adding twenty-eight individual medals to the haul. Add twenty-four Bronze medals for the Boys Novice Eight, Girls Second Varsity Four, and Girls Novice Eight, and DUC’s individual medal count astounds at one hundred three.

“We are very proud of the eleven crews that qualified for the National Championships next month” reflects DUC Program Director and Head Coach, Steve Perry. “This weekend produced the best DUC results in our twenty-year history. I am so proud of our rowers, and I want to thank their parents and our partners at the City of Dallas for their dedication to these amazing kids and  the sport of Rowing.

Would you like to try rowing? Dallas United Crew offers Beginner Summer Camps. This fun, four-day camp teaches boys and girls in grades 6-12 the fundamentals of rowing. And, those who love it can keep rowing with DUC's Intermediate Rowing Camp so that they are ready for High School or Advanced Middle School Rowing in the Fall.