Dec. 18, 2002
Notre Dame, Ind. – Notre Dame rowing coach Martin Stone announced the signings of Alyssa Close, Jessica Guzik and Colleen Larson to national letters of intent. All three student-athletes will join the Irish roster for the 2003-04 season.
Close, from South Dennis, Mass., is in her fourth year rowing at Tabor Academy. She has rowed in the first boat the last three years and is a co-captain this season. Standing at 5-11, Close has rowed at the Head of the Charles the last two years and the Henley Women’s Regatta in 2001. Her crew won the petite finals at the NEIRA Championships in 2002 with the fifth-fastest time.
Guzik, from Annandale, Va., and Woodson High School, was an all-Virginia rower in 2002 and was named an all-metropolitan rower by the Washington Post in 2002. The recipient of the W.T. Woodson Athletic Achievement Award in 2002, the 5-11 Guzik was a gold medal winner at the 2002 United States Nationals in the women’s junior eight category with Water Street Rowing.
Academically, Guzik is a three-year National Honor Society member and a two-year French Honor Society member. She won the AP Scholar Award and is a member of the National Art Honor Society.
A native of Longwood, Fla., Larson has rowed for four years, including three as a varsity competitor for the Lake Brantley Rowing Association. The 5-11 Larson has rowed in the Florida High School State Championships the past three season, finishing second in the novice eight as a freshman and in the varsity eight as a sophomore. Her junior season, her crew was fifth, with Larson sitting in the third seat.
Larson also competed in the Scholastic Nationals as a junior and was eighth of 60 crews at the Southern Indoor Sprints and placed second in the varsity relay. Larson was a member of the United State Rowing Identification Camp (2001, 2002), the Nike Rowing Camp at the University of Michigan (2001, 2002) and the Orlando Rowing Club summer rowing program (1999-2002).
Academically, Larson currently ranks 10th out of 651 students, She is a three-year member of the National Honor Society, two years in the Beta Club and part of the history club. She also has been a part of Psi Eta (the science honorary club) for four years and Epsilon Nu Gamma (the English honorary club), serving as president for one year. She has been a member of the 4.0 honor roll the past four years and has a 4.388 grade-point average.
“We are excited to have three such talented student-athletes joining our program,” head coach Martin Stone says.
“They all have excellent rowing and academic credentials and will fit in nicely with the type of athletes we have at Notre Dame. The future is very bright for our program.”