Photo courtesy of Ashley Bauer
Sarah Davis (left) and Ashley Bauer (right) high five after winning the First Varsity Eight National Championship race.
Named the 2015 Big Ten Athlete of the Year for her work on The Ohio State University's women's rowing team, this New Albany High School graduate has her sites set on the Olympics.
Ashley Bauer was a member of the rowing team that won the 2015 NCAA National Championship for OSU, and she says the presence of local athletes such as herself and former Ohio State football player Zach Boren on college teams is a testament to how great the local high school athletic programs are.
College teams also offer their own set of advantages. Many international students are on the rowing team, Bauer says, and they and the local students learn from one another.
“They start rowing a lot earlier, typically, than Americans row,” Bauer says.
Bauer plans to graduate from OSU in December with a major in international studies, specializing in world economy and business. Though her rowing time at OSU has ended, she plans to try out for the US National Rowing team for the 2020 Olympic Games and will be training at OSU for a year in preparation for this.
“I’m kind of ready for the next challenge, I think,” Bauer says. “I think Ohio State has really prepared me well for it.”
She says that in the future, she hopes to help people fall in love with rowing the way she did.
“Once I’m done being an actual rower, I would love to go back and coach,” Bauer says. “I would love to go to New Albany and hopefully give that to someone else.”
Francis Pellicciaro is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at ssole@cityscenemediagroup.com.
