CRCA Announces 2007

National Coach of the Year Awards

June 4, 2007

The Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) announces its National Coaches of the Year. This award recognizes the Rowing Coach that fits one or more of the following criteria from each of the three NCAA divisions.

He/she has had outstanding success during the current season
He/she has demonstrated great team improvement from prior season
He/she has fulfilled his/her team’s potential
He/she has demonstrated a high level of professionalism and integrity as a coach

Division I              NAME                              UNIVERSITY

Head Coach          Will Porter                         Yale University

        Will Porter, who guided the Yale varsity eight to the first NCAA Rowing Championship in school history, has been named the Division I CRCA Coach of the Year. Yale's varsity eight had its first undefeated season since 1979, culminating with a nearly two-second victory in the Grand Final at the NCAA Championships. As a team, the Bulldogs placed fourth at the NCAAs, the second highest finish in school history. Porter led Yale's varsity to a perfect 12-0 record in the dual race season this spring and then a victory at the Eastern Sprints for the second time in the last three years. The Bulldogs also captured the Charles Willing Jr. Team trophy for overall supremacy at Eastern Sprints. Porter, who recently completed his eighth season as Yale's head coach, has guided the team to a berth in the NCAA Championship in each of the last seven years. His overall record at Yale is 65-15.

 

Division I              NAME                              UNIVERSITY

Assistant Coach    Steve Pritzker                    University of Virginia

        Steve Pritzker just completed his fourth season as an assistant coach at UVA.  After volunteering with the women's rowing team during the 2004 season while a fulltime student at UVa's business school, Pritzker assumed full time coaching responsibilities in the spring of 2005.  Steve helped Virginia finish second overall as a team in both 2005 and in 2007.

        This year, Steve coached the varsity fours at Virginia.  Both of his varsity fours were undefeated all year, with the first varsity four winning the NCAA Championship by just over 10 seconds.  At the South/Central Regatta, the first varsity four won by 11 seconds and his next two fours placed first and second in the open four race.  Steve also coached the undefeated 2005 NCAA Champions in that event and worked with the 2004 Champions as well.  Additionally, his fours have been ACC and South/Central champions each year.

 

Division II            NAME                              UNIVERSITY

Head Coach          John Fuchs                        Western Washington University

      Western Washington University Won the 2007 NCAA Division II National Championship - WWU 20, UC San Diego 15, Dowling 8, Nova Southeastern 7. Both the varsity eight and varsity four placed first in grand finals and qualifying heats at nationals.  Western Washington was ranked No.1 nationally in final USRowing/CRCA Coaches Poll.  The varsity 8 placed third, novice 4 first and second varsity eight fifth in grand finals and varsity 4 finished third in petite final at Western Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championships.

 

Division III           NAME                              UNIVERSITY

Head Coach          Anne Lewis                       Bates College

      As interim head coach at Bates in 2006-07, Lewis guided the Bobcats women's crew to its finest season to date, finishing third in the overall team standings and winning the bronze medal in the grand final at the NCAA Rowing Championships in Oak Ridge, Tenn. Bates sent two boats to NCAAs after winning fourth place in the 1V finals and third place in the 2V finals at the New England Rowing Championships. Bates also placed two crew members, Nicole Ritchie and Jackie Olson, on the CRCA All-America eights for the first time.

        A native of Belmont, Mass., Lewis attended Williams College with little rowing experience. As a sophomore she was a member of Williams' 1V boat that won the grand final and took home the first NCAA Division III Rowing Championship in 2002. Lewis also captained the Williams crew to a third-place national finish in 2004. After graduating with a physics and political science double major, she served as a volunteer assistant at Boston University in 2004-05 before joining the Bates staff as assistant rowing coach in 2005, guiding the Bates women's novice crew to a silver medal at the New England championships and a bronze at ECACs in 2006.