Xavier female rowers stroke forward into history

By Christine Bordelon
Clarion Herald

The all-female rowing team at Xavier University of Louisiana is hanging the perception that rowing is a White, all-male sport.


“There is a very active women’s circuit in collegiate rowing,” said Dr. Elizabeth Manley, Ph.D., a history and women’s studies teacher and history department chair at Xavier who co-founded the team. “It’s probably seen in the public’s imagination as a men’s sport, but since Title IX, rowing has really grown substantially for women and has become a place where women have really excelled in the United States, particularly.”

Manley coaches the team with Chloé Jobin, Xavier’s corporate and foundations coordinator with the Office of Institutional Advancement. Both are active in the sport at the New Orleans Rowing Club (NORC), and Manley is board secretary.

“Chloe and I are coaching, moderating, advising, doing whatever needs to be done to provide a platform that these students can experience rowing,” Manley said.

Xavier’s team is following the lead of St. Augustine’s University in Raleigh, North Carolina, another Historically Black College or University (HBCU) that launched its female team in 2022.

“To step in the space that has been seen predominantly as a men’s sport and predominantly a White sport, and to know that across all levels of the sport there are people actively looking to change (the face of rowing), it’s incredible because the ability to row has nothing to do with race,” Manley said. “We would love to see it expand here (and internationally). Until you can see others who look like you in the sport, it doesn’t seem like something that can be for you.”

How rowing is beneficial
When Manley and Jobin conceived the idea of a rowing team, they talked it up to students until one said, “Dr. Manley, are you going to keep talking about it or are you going to do it?”

“All right, let’s do it,” she said.

With the support of NORC, Xavier University and BLJ Community Rowing, the Xavier Rowing Club launched last September.
 
“We are on a mission to encourage kids to join sports that African-American students typically don’t participate in,” said Melissa Brown, Xavier’s Recreation Department and Club Sports director.

Rowing is the newest club sport, and one that drew a lot of interest from students. The intention wasn’t to form an all-female team.

“It’s just who expressed interest and came out,” Manley said.


Currently, the team has a roster of 14. Two students joined at a kickoff event Jan. 19 after learning the rowing fundamentals and getting tips from Olympic rower David Banks, BLJ Rowing founder Brannon Johnson, former University of Washington coach Marcus Brown and NORC members.

Manley, a former Division I college gymnast, discovered rowing in 2017 through a professor friend at Oxford University. She didn’t think she could love another sport as much as she did gymnastics.


“I was hooked from the beginning,” Manley said about rowing. “It’s both a physically demanding and intellectually demanding sport. I think that’s what the girls like.”

Manley gained much from being a college athlete, including close bonds with team members and connecting with people she might not have befriended otherwise.

“It helps with focus and goal setting, prioritizing with scheduling and taking ownership of your work,” Manley said. “For me, I teach history, but I am just as much interested in helping students figure out their place in the world and what they want to do – where they want to be in the world and what they want to be. 

“I think sports, and a focus on and participation in athletics at a college level, really amplifies those lessons and experiences. It offers an opportunity to travel and experience the world and learn how to work hard.”

Team members have told Manley that rowing has pushed their boundaries in physical and mental ways. She was encouraged to see Black female rowers.


Xavier senior Trinity Ward, who is majoring in political science/pre-law, joined the team in the fall. She was a track athlete through high school in land-locked Lubbock, Texas, and wanted to try something different.

“I’ve gained discipline and had to learn something completely new,” Ward said. “Rowing is about form and technique, and it’s a team effort, so you have to stay consistent.  If one person is not in form, it’s harder for the whole team. It has also taught me group thinking in a way that is beneficial. Everybody is relying upon each person to do their job in the boat.”

Practice will unite team
Generally, collegiate rowing is divided into two seasons. In the spring, rowers compete in  sprint races of 1,000 or 2,000 meters in a line. In the fall, there are longer “head” races of  5,000 meters along a more winding and sometimes scenic course, Jobin said.

The Xavier coaches hope to increase practices to three times a week to get the team in shape to compete in the spring, with a goal of being in the state championship in March.     
   

Practices are held at the New Orleans Rowing Club Boathouse on Bayou St. John. The team will compete in 4- and 8-crew races, Jobin said.

Manley said NORC is providing the space, equipment and coaching. If things go really well and team members are comfortable with their abilities, Xavier’s Rowing Team will compete in the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association Regatta in April in Tennessee.

“We have to get some ducks in a row to make that happen,” Manley said.

Just recently, manufacturer Concept2 supplied six, new ErgRowers through its Pulling Together Funds to Xavier’s Fitness Center, enabling the team to train on campus. Racing gear manufacturer JL just committed to provide team uniforms, Manley said.

“We’re really excited about that,” adding the team will decide on typeface and logo design.

Manley and Jobin know the value of diversifying rowing, not only to Xavier but also to the community. It could change the way people view the sport.

“For me, one of the most important things is that Xavier students represent this model for others – if we could have a rowing club at a predominantly HBCU, it really starts to open up for others,” Manley said. “The girls know that and are really excited.”

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