From the Desk of Scott McVean - Senior Associate Director of Athletics

RIT has been a home to me for 38 of the 41 years of my life. My position as Senior Associate Athletics Director, but I started as a three-year old bouncing a basketball up and down Clark Gymnasium. RIT has always been a special place for me, and every day I work towards making the student-athlete experience memorable.

2020 brought many challenges for intercollegiate athletics, while presenting opportunities to grow and develop as an administrator. The pandemic tested our management agility, while testing everyone’s patience, mental health and ability to connect with each other. Difficult decisions were made and we all adapted to the best of our ability. Sitting on the sidelines is never easy.

While we all wear many hats in athletics, my office is focused on budget management, athletic facility projects/renovations, staff supervision, NCAA/conference issues, and game management assistance. I also serve as the Region II chair for the Division III Men’s Lacrosse committee. 

Currently, there are many new and exciting projects happening. We are in the midst of renovating of our outside facilities (Baseball, Softball, Track & Field) and in the near future, Tiger Stadium. The projects have sparked extra energy around those programs.  I am also working on procuring necessary resources for student-athlete success, while utilizing strategic initiatives. For example, we have recently contracted with Under Armour for our team and coach apparel. You will see our athletes competing and walking around in their new UA swag!

With a change in leadership at the helm of our department, we have new opportunities and insight. We are excited to see our fans able to come out to cheer on their favorite Tiger teams this year. Follow us on social media for the latest updates and subscribe to our RIT athletics app - it is a tremendous one-stop shop for all Tiger athletics information. 

Swimming & Diving - Excited To Be Back

The Swimming & Diving team is excited to be competing once again after a shortened 2020-21 season.  Although we are a men’s and women’s team, we are truly one team that is united towards common goals.  Our competition season has started off very well.  For the first time in program history, the men’s team defeated Liberty League rival RPI and is 4-1 in dual meets, while the women’s team is 5-0.

We are looking forward to hosting the Don Richards Invitational on December 3rd and 4th. The athletes are looking forward to posting some season-best times and scores as we set our sights on the Liberty League Championships in February and NCAAs in March.

Our captains have enhanced the culture and set the tone for practice and competition for the rest of the team. This is a unique year with two classes that had not previously competed at the NCAA level. The men's co-captains are graduate student Tyler Schwarz and juniors Aidan Daudier and Brendan Kapp, while the women’s team is led by senior Phoebe Huey and juniors Liz Kisker and KhaVy Sangasy, and senior Anastasia Ueda leads the divers. Several others have stepped up as well and the team has created an amazing energy on the pool deck.

We are very thankful to be competing again and after a year hiatus, we are planning our winter training trip to Fort Pierce, Florida at the end of December. The trip will launch us into the championship season where our team can celebrate the journey we have been on.  It’s a great time to be a Tiger!

GO TIGERS!

Phil Baretela - Men and Women's Swimming & Diving

RIT Crew Happy To Be Back Rowing

Ready all? Row!

It feels great to be back! Last fall Men’s and Women’s Crew was limited to ergometers at the Gosnell Boathouse parking lot. This August the crews returned with a renewed enthusiasm for the fall training season, enjoying longer rows on the Genesee River and the fun of head racing against the clock.

With so many graduating seniors last spring, our returning veteran numbers were a little lower than normal, but we quickly built them back up with incoming recruits and by pounding the pavement on the Quarter Mile looking for those diamond-in-the-rough walk-ons. The freshmen/novice rowers have proven to be a formidable group, so now our rosters are back to being healthy and strong.

The fall racing season produced many strong performances from both squads. In late September, we took our first road trip in over a year to Mercyhurst. The crews raced a 5k out and back on Findley Lake, finishing up with an exciting side-by-side 500-meter sprint. Two weekends later we raced at the Head of the Genesee Regatta. An old rivalry was resumed between the University of Rochester and RIT. The men finished first to hoist the Kate Louise Cup, while the women finished a few seconds behind the U of R. We were lucky enough to gain two collegiate entries into the prestigious Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston, where the women finished a respectable 21st place, just missing a guaranteed entry for next year by less than a second. We closed out the season in Ithaca at the Touchdown Regatta, where one touchdown was scored by the varsity women’s eight in the first flight of races.

But the premier event of our fall season was our very own Henley Cup. Named after the finest RIT Crew dog ever, Henley, this annual race is an intra-squad event that includes varsity and novice, racing back to the boathouse from the iron railroad bridge. This year’s head race was held in miserable, cold and rainy conditions, but you never would have known it by the happy and smiling faces coming off the water. For the first time in over a year, parents and families could attend a regatta to support the crews, and they were standing on shore in droves, cheering and taking photos. We couldn’t believe it! It was a moment of true joy in the rain and a return to the collective spirit of team and family.

We are looking forward to the spring and more opportunities for racing to showcase our Tiger Pride! We hope to see you then!

Go Tigers!

Jim Bodenstedt, Men’s and Women’s Crew

Tigers In The Crowd