Carter Announces Five Rowing Signees
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The University of Miami rowingprogram is pleased to announce the addition of five signees to the 2012-13roster, head coach Andrew Carter declared Monday.
Theearly recruiting class includes Lydia Barber, Frida Carlsson, Alex Gunner,Jaimie Snelgrove and Joanna Unsworth. In addition to excellence athletically,all five have proven themselves in the classroom.
“I’mvery pleased to welcome this group of young women to the University of Miamifamily,” Carter said. “Each brings extraordinary talents to our program andwe’re looking forward to the impact each of them will have. However, it’s theimpact that they will have as a group that is really exciting, and there is nodoubt they will add terrific things to the outstanding roster of students wehave here now.”
Lydia Barber
Barberhails from Bethesda, Md., and is the lone coxswain in the UM early signingclass. As coxswain for the men’s teams at both Walt Whitman High School andThompson Boat Center (Washington, D.C.), she has steered crews at some of NorthAmerica’s premier regattas, including the Royal Canadian Henley Regatta, theScholastic Rowing Association of America Championship, US Rowing National Championshipand the Head of the Charles. In the past two years, Barber has coxedmedal-winning crews on the national stage for both Walt Whitman and TBC.
Carter Quote: “Lydia made perhaps thebiggest impression on our team of anyone we’ve had visit in the past couple ofyears. It seemed that I had to daily answer the question, ‘Is Lydia going tocome to UM?’ I think this is really important for a coxswain candidate. Thefact that, as a recruit, Lydia was able to get the attention of our currentstudents speaks volumes to the presence she will have once she’s skippering oneof our crews.”
Frida Carlsson
FromVänersborg, Sweden, Carlsson has excellent experience in rowing in addition toa diverse background in nordic skiing, cross country running and soccer. An accomplishedsculler, Carlsson has brought home medals to her home club at VanersborgsRoddklubb from regattas throughout the country. As the highlight to her 2012season, she was selected to represent Sweden at the 2012 Junior WorldChampionship in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
Carter Quote: “Frida has alreadyaccomplished some impressive things, including racing at a World Championship,but I know she has set the bar very high for herself in her rowing. Her goalsare aggressive and that is going to have a great impact on our program. We havesome highly competitive women on our team who are pushing themselves and theirteammates every day. Frida is going to swing seamlessly into that culture.”
Alex Gunner
Gunneris a native of Elma, N.Y., and rows for both the Nichols School and the WestSide Rowing Club in Buffalo. At Nichols, she has emerged as a leader over thepast two years, making multiple finals and earning a medal at the New YorkState Scholastic Championship. At West Side RC, Gunner has been a fixture in club’stop junior crews over the past two summers.
Carter Quote: “Alex was one of the earliestofficial visit students we welcomed on campus this fall. She made a terrificfirst impression with me and I know that she did the same with our team. Notonly does she have strong athletic credentials, but a fantastic personality andone that fits in with our group perfectly. Alex brings a really good foundationto the table, but I think that when she gets in with our team she’s reallygoing to take off – I’m really looking forward to seeing what she does at thisnext level.”
Jaimie Snelgrove
Snelgroveis from Jordan, Ontario, Canada, and rows for both Dennis Morris SecondarySchool and the St. Catharines Rowing Club. Her high school career at DennisMorris has been exceptional and includes gold and bronze medals at the CanadianSecondary School Rowing Association Championship in St. Catharines, Ontario. Underthe guidance of coach Kathy Boyes at the St. Catharines Rowing Club, Snelgrove hasfinished second in the U19 Women’s 8+ at the prestigious 2012 Royal CanadianHenley Regatta. She capped her 2012 season by winning gold for Canada as thestroke of both the Women’s 8+ and Women’s 4+ at the annual CanAmMex Regatta inMexico City.
Carter Quote: “Jaimie is a young woman whohas limitless potential. She’s been rowing at one of the best clubs in NorthAmerica with one of the best junior coaches I know, so I have extremeconfidence that she’s going to be ready on Day 1. I’ve seen her in action inthe boat and I’ve seen her interact with our team. She’s absolutely a Hurricanerower and I know she’s going to be great here at UM.”
Joanna Unsworth
FromHenley-on-Thames, England, Unsworth attends Shiplake College and is a member ofHenley Rowing Club. She has achieved many outstanding results during her juniorcareer, including three gold medals in the 2011 British Championships in bothsweep and sculling events. In 2012, Unsworth was a member of the Henley RC Quadthat won the inaugural junior women’s event in the prestigious Henley RoyalRegatta. To cap off her 2012 season, Unsworth represented Great Britain at theJunior World Championship in the Women’s Quad Event.
Carter Quote: “I’ve gotten to know Joannathrough this process and I’ve been really impressed with her training ethic. Herapproach to the sport and how she communicates reminds me a great deal of somegreat competitors I’ve not only had the privilege to coach, but row with in mycareer. What Jo has already done as a rower is special, but I’m convinced thatwith her outlook on training and her understanding of what that will yield,she’s only scratched the surface. I think she’s going to do great things atUM.”
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