As the early morning midst dances across the tranquil Charles River, a symphony of oars slices through the dawn of silence waters. The boys in the boat begin a journey for the ultimate goal of not only victory but also camaraderie. It is safe to say that Belmont Hill’s varsity crew team had another successful season. After their 4-0 sweep against Nobles in the first scrimmage of the year, it was pretty much all uphill from there. Going undefeated in ISL play, the Belmont Hill crew team looked to make another strong run at the New England Interscholastic Rowing Association (NEIRA) Regatta. The top two boats, 1v4 and 2v4, took a huge victory over one of the top-ranked crew teams in America, Deerfield Academy, along with a majority win over Phillips Andover, two highlights from the season.
With 51 guys making up one of the biggest teams to date, the crew team filled five full 8-person boats. Led by captains Andrew Bittner ’24, Aaron Stanger ’24, and Alex Schmidek ’24 along with head coach Mr. Richards, the crew set their sights high long before March came around. The boys ‘erged’ almost every day during the winter season, working to lower their times and increase sustainable endurance. When asked what he loved about his team, Coach Richards highlighted everything from the physical discomfort to the satisfying payoff: “It doesn’t have to be fun to be fun. The confidence from my boys has just been incredibly inspiring all throughout the year. That’s why we work so hard.”
Jack Kastner ’25 displayed another spectacular season earning his spot on the national team. A bunch of kids from the team also got selected to row at the Royal Canadian Henley Regatta within the Cambridge Boat Club (CBC). The club has been known for being a gateway to college recruiting, helping guys such as Andrew Bitnner ’24 and Aaron Stanger ’24 to row at Yale along with many other notable recruits: Lev Tolkoff ’24 (Tufts), Nathan Pappas ’24 (Harvard), Brian Lee ’24 (Harvard), Max Glick ’24 (Penn), and Gabe Simmons ’24 (Colgate). In a previous erg test, the boys also came up with one of the fastest times to date, placing a majority of the top rowers in the Belmont Hill hall of fame.
The team obtained yet another Northeast Regional Championship. While the 3v8 and 4v8 boats head up to North Andover to compete for the JV Championship at Brooks, the top four boats, 1v4, 2v4, 3v4, and 4v4, look to capture a highly anticipated NEIRA championship on Saturday, May 25. In winning, the top two boats were able to qualify for another trip down to Sarasota, Florida to row in Youth Nationals, a remarkable achievement. The Belmont Hill top rowers have shown themselves to be one of, if not the top crew team in the nation. The Panel congratulates Belmont Hill Varsity Crew on another stunning season and wishes them luck for their 2025 season!
