CASSELBERRY, Fla. — Fall crew season recently came to a close and once again, Winter Park Crew finished undefeated. Crew doesn’t have much of an offseason with more races approaching in a year-round sport and international competitions for teams at the caliber of Winter Park.

Although crew is a synchronized team sport, there are still standouts, with senior Reilly Harris being an integral part of the team’s success.

Not only is Winter Park Crew one of the most prestigious teams in the state of Florida, but also the country. They have accomplished feats other teams dream of. 

“Everything about this team I love,” Harris said. “I love the friendships I’ve made. The coach I have has led us to so much success. We’ve won so many things as a team and that’s what makes it so much more special is having a team, a team we’re part of.”

A team like theirs is going to have strong leadership at the top like Harris. 

“My team is like a family,” she said. “I really enjoy being here coming down to practice, it makes it so much better and more enjoyable when you know you’re coming down to a group of people that you love and care about and you can spend this two or three hours a day with them.”

Harris never really had a sport to call her own until her mom encouraged her to try out crew.

“She decided to put me in it and ever since then I’m glad she put me into it,” Harris said. “I started out, I never had a sport I was super good at or really loved but since joining crew I’ve found my passion which I’m gonna keep doing this for the next four years as well. And I’ve loved the past four years here as well.”

Four years with Winter Park Crew, Harris has led them to the highly acclaimed Henley Regatta in England twice.

“Definitely, those two years at Henley were the top two experiences I’ve had. Being able to live with your teammates and for three weeks, and at the end of it, you get to race for all the hard work you put in all year long,” she said. “Not even just those three weeks we were there, but it’s so rewarding being able to race and seeing those results pay off.”

Her rowing career is going from the most prestigious high school program in the country to one of the highest level collegiate programs, committing to Yale. 

“I had a lot of help from Coach Vertulo. He helped me out throughout the process,” she said. “I visited a lot of great schools, but at the end of the day, I knew Yale was where I wanted to be after seeing the team there and coaches there. I knew that’s where I wanted to be. I’m super excited both the school and the team are amazing programs, and I’m super excited for the next four years.”