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Elizabeth Killien '02 College: Williams College (Massachusetts) How I got involved in crew I came to Lakeside knowing I was going to participate in soccer and swimming, but I also wanted to find a spring sport. Crew was the one I could begin as a freshman having never done it before, with a bunch of other freshman who also had no rowing experience. I loved it right away, but not only for the sport itself. I loved that it was such a team-oriented sport, and that I could do a sport I enjoyed outside, and on the water. Successes
Steps to academic and athletic success Both Lakeside and Williams emphasize being able to do well in both academics and athletics, which I think provided a great foundation and balance. Williams is a Division III school, but is highly competitive in that division. I liked being at a school that wasn’t quite at the level of a Division I program, but where I could still compete on a national level. Best crew memory More than anything else, my best crew memory is the process of working toward the NCAA championship throughout my senior year. On the very day we placed 5th at the end of my junior year, our team decided that for the next year we would commit ourselves to winning the championship. We did a lot of goal setting throughout the summer to prepare for the upcoming year. Each teammate set a monthly goal for herself. As captains, we compiled and shared these with everyone on the team so that we could see each other’s goals, and our progress toward those goals. We also had an overlying team goal for where we wanted people to be when they came back in the fall. By putting this program in place early, we were more motivated both individually and as a team because every one of us was fully invested in the outcome of the process.
Challenges The hardest thing for me was coming back after spending the fall of my junior year abroad. It was definitely challenging to get back into the swing of things with a team that had been going on for several months on their own. It was one of the first times with crew that I had ever really been dissatisfied with my personal performance, and coming back in that position as a junior was definitely a challenge. Going abroad was a fantastic experience, but no amount of individual training could make up for having been away from the team for those months.
Lakeside’s impact Lakeside taught me to balance a rigorous academic environment with a fairly rigorous athletic program in both swimming and rowing. Being familiar with balancing those two elements, and knowing what it’s like to be part of a team where everyone is motivated both as an athlete and as a student, definitely helped with my transition into college life. Staying motivated There were definitely plenty of days where there were lots of other things that I would rather have been doing than working out in the gym or going out on the water. But when you’ve made the commitment, it’s just what you do. It’s not even something you think of as an option. It comes down to your commitment to the rest of the team, and knowing that everyone else is going to be there. Impact of sports on personal/academic life I rarely had any times during high school and college when I wasn’t involved in both athletics and academics. Having done both at Lakeside made it much less of a shock to come into college and immediately start with a fairly tough academic schedule and be part of the crew team. Being involved in sports really added to my overall experience. It was great to have an outlet after being in class all day—I could forget about everything else that was going on for a few hours. At the same time, it definitely has its drawbacks. It took up a lot of time that I could have spent studying, being with friends, or doing other things. Advice for current Lakeside students contemplating college athletics One thing I wish I had done differently when I was deciding where I wanted to go to college would have been to put more of an emphasis on how much I wanted to continue in crew. Lakeside places a very strong emphasis on choosing a school because of the school, not the sports. I think that is great advice because so many people end up not continuing with a college sport for various reasons. I definitely took Lakeside’s advice to heart. I looked at rowing programs, but it was not a deciding factor. Even though Williams ended up being an ideal place for me to keep rowing, in a way I wish I had put more emphasis on my future with crew and realized at the time how important it was for me to keep doing it. I might not have been as happy at another school where I didn’t have the positive experience with crew that I did at Williams. So while Lakeside’s advice is great, if you do have a strong commitment to a particular sport, then choosing a school where you can be happy doing that sport is also important.
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