ORLANDO, Fla. — Boone High School’s freshman girls crew team is heading to the national championships this weekend in Oak Ridge, Tenn.
Most of the girls on the team just started rowing in the past few years.
Bill Palmer has been rowing and coaching since the 1980s, when he was in high school. He was the first unofficial coach for Boone. Palmer coached his own children when they were in high school. After some time away, he returned to coach the Braves this year.
“Rowing is 99% frustration and 1% elation because you’re doing the same thing over and over and over again,” Palmer said. “And then you have that one good row, and you are good. You’re good for a long time. You want to do it again.”
One of Boone’s most dominant crews is made up of four freshmen. Most of them just started rowing this year.
“A coach can look a whole lot better when he has great athletes. And I’ve got four great athletes right here. So it kind of makes me they make me look good,” Palmer said.
Freshman rower Annmarie Douglas-Potter said it’s been a fun season.
“I’ve done sports in the past, but this sport has just been so different because I’ve made such strong connections, and it’s just really fun,” Douglas-Potter said.
The crew has been on the water at Bill Frederick Park practicing twice a week. In April, they competed in the state championships, finishing in the top three.
“Just to watch them cross the finish line and hear the announcer say, ‘Boone is scholastic champions’. And I could hear the girls in the boat screaming, ‘We did it!’ That was just one of the neatest things,” Palmer said.
Freshman Ilsa Fullerton said she is proud of what the team has accomplished this season.
“It really shows how much work we’ve put into it. We come here every single day pushing, and it’s really fun. And, like, holding my medals and holding my trophy, it’s just really exciting,” Fullerton said.