Benefield: Incoming college rowers hit the books as hard they do the water

I called some recently graduated high school athletes and posed various versions of this scientific question: “Does rowing attract smartypants athletes or do athletes attain smartypants status only after they start rowing?”

It’s a legitimate question if one looks at the grade point averages and university destinations of the recently graduated seniors who competed with the Petaluma-based North Bay Rowing Club.

University of California at Berkeley, University of San Diego, University of Colorado, University of Portland, University of California at San Diego - they are among the college destinations of the graduating class and six of the club’s most recent graduates are on track to row for their colleges.

“Does it draw smart kids? I’d say probably,” coach Will Whalen said.

Or at least it draws the kind of kid with a determined streak. The grit it takes to power through 2,000 meters on a boat barely wider than your bum while every fiber of your being is begging you to stop is the same grit some call on to grind out a math course or an English essay.

“I don’t think stubbornness is the right word; it’s more stick-to-itiveness, or determination,” Whalen said. “Definitely those are qualities that you need in order to be fast. You have to have all the skill in the sport but in order to find that extra (gear) in the race you have to be very stubborn.

“That translates to kids who are attacking school in another manner,” he said.

Sam Lamos, the Cal-bound grad from Petaluma High with a higher-than-perfect-4.0 grade point average, laughed when I asked her the question.

“I feel like it kind of helped, but it wasn’t like you got on the rowing team and you became super smart,” she said.

But then she did a quick calculation and indeed, her pals on the team are pretty brainy. The valedictorian rows. Most of her buddies have a 4.0 or better.

Instead of one begetting the other, Lamos, who earned a partial scholarship from the Cal rowing team, said sport and school were in sync with this crop of kids.

“The culture of the people who are in that community kind of helped us along,” she said.

Taking a subject you don’t like? You buckle down, just like in sport, Lamos said.

“You persevere through it, and that is exactly what you have to do in rowing: keep working, keep your eye on the finish line or PRing your (2,000 meter) goal,” she said. “I feel like that kind of energy transfers over when you are studying for a test you have.”

“Rowing itself takes a lot of commitment, just the things you see in a really focused student,” she said. “I don’t know if it crosses over but for me it definitely did.”

Lamos wasn’t the only rower who mentioned time management as a critical skill learned through athletics.

“I know that I work better when I’m on a schedule,” said Maddie Wagner, a Petaluma High grad who is bound for the University of California at San Diego, where she will study physiology and neuroscience while rowing.

“I know we all had a really strong academic background coming into the sport,” she said, using the words “schedule” and “regimen” to describe both sport and school.

Incoming University of Portland freshman Julia Keefer said that not only did rowing help her choose a school, but she expects it to aid her transition from Petaluma High senior to college freshman.

“I found out who I’m rooming with, two other rowers with the same schedule and another nursing student,” she said.

The sport, most sports really, can provide instant common bonds between freshmen converging on a college campus - a transition that can be overwhelming for some.

“I have met a few rowers from the team,” said Matias Kunzman, a Petaluma High grad who will row for San Diego State University’s club squad next season. “I hope that I’ll make good connections on the team, so I’ll have friends in that area.”

Just like determination and that stick-to-itiveness that Whalen says helps a kid succeed in both the boat and the classroom, a sense of community can help a student get a foothold in college.

“I feel like Berkeley is such a big school, I feel like once I get on the team, I already know a couple of girls from my freshman class. It’s just automatic,” Lamos said. “We are all doing the same work, doing the same classes, getting through the day.”

It’s a good way for any smartypants freshman to find her footing, even if it’s on water.

You can reach staff columnist Kerry Benefield at 526-8671 or kerry.benefield@pressdemocrat.com, on Twitter @benefield and on Instagram at kerry.benefield.