The History of Crew at Stony Brook University

The Varsity Years

The beginnings of Stony Brook University's Crew program pre-date the creation of the Stony Brook Campus. The inception of Crew at what was then the State University of New York, Long Island Center took place while the campus was still located in Oyster Bay.

According to alumni Pat Crean (1961), the team was founded as a result of a simple letter from Mr. Allan Borghard. Written on July 9th, 1958, the letter suggested the formation of a crew program at what was then simply called "State University", and Borghard offered himself as the team's first coach [1].

And from such humble origins came humble beginnings. The team at the time only had one shell, donated by Non-Pariel Rowing on the Harlem River. To complicate things further, the shell was damaged during transport, forcing the team's very first act to be the repair of its only boat [1].

By spring 1959 the program at Oyster Bay had two crews and one shell. Thanks to a timely donation by Rutgers University Crew, a second shell was added, only to become the only shell after the demise of the team's first. Regardless, the team persevered and on April 4th competed for the first time, a landslide defeat at the hands of St. John's University. Despite the loss, State University approved further collegiate competition and competed yet again, dropping a decision against Iona College. A third match showed the team's potential, as the team finished in a "dead heat" against Clark University. To cap the season, the campus at Oyster Bay began the first annual North Shore Invitational Regatta [1].

Crew continued to develop as the campus was relocated to Stony Brook. According to archieved articles from the New York Times the team consistently placed in the top 3 at the Metropolitan Championships, often coming as close as a half a length from the win, as it did in 1968 against Iona College [2]. The team peaked in the late 1970's, earning the Metropolitan Championship win in 1976. While the varsity program disbanded by the end of the 1970's due to inadequate means to support, the program raised three to the Stony Brook Athletic Hall of Fame: John Brisson Jr. (1976), Jonathan Cayle (1976), and Denise Logan-Heuser (1977).

The Return of Crew

While the tenure of crew as an official varsity program at Stony Brook ended in the 1970's, the team did not cease to exist for long. Thanks to the efforts of such alumni as Michael Chang (2002), crew re-emerged at Stony Brook in the late 1990's

The problems the team suffered early in its history seemed to repeat themselves in this new beginning. The team suffered from a lack of equipment and funding. To compound these issues the added stress of retention, an issue of less concern in a recognized varsity support, made organization a primary concern to the team.

However, by the beginning of the 21st century Stony Brook yet again built itself as a power in the intercollegiate rowing community. Rules throughout national rowing made Stony Brook as a club program elligible for nearly every regatta and championship attended by varsity programs, providing an excellent opportunity to put the program on the map. By 2004 the program regularly defeated established programs such as Penn State, University of Massachusetts, Iona, Army, and Temple University, resulting in outstanding placements at the Knecht Cup NCAA Regionals, NYS Collegiate Rowing Championships (ECAC Qualifier), the Metropolitan Rowing Championships, and the Head of the Charles Regatta.

Rowing's future remains bright at Stony Brook. The size of the team grows each year, expanding the opportunity to row in more diverse events. Recruitment has returned to Stony Brook, as rowers from throughout the United States attend the university to compete. While there are many obstacles left to becoming a truly complete program, Seawolves Crew is confident that it's only a matter of time until all the pieces come together.

References:

1. "The History of Stony Brook Crew" The Founders Group, Stony Brook Alumni Association. (link)

2. "Iona Eight Keeps MET Rowing Title; Scores Half-Length Win Over Stony Brook in Race Here" The New York Times. (link)