May 10, 2007

Abbie DiPalma

GENEVA, N.Y.—William Smith College first-year coxswain Abbie DiPalma (Portsmouth Abbey School/Middleton, R.I.) is one of only 24 athletes invited to the 2007 USRowing Women’s National Team Freshman Camp. The camp, which will be run by University of Wisconsin Women’s Rowing Head Coach Bebe Bryans, will be held in Madison, Wis., June 18-24.

The coxswain for the Heron novice eight this season, DiPalma has helped the boat earn two Liberty League Boat of the Week Awards. She and her teammates earned the first award following a season-opening win over Ithaca in September. They picked up their second accolade in April thanks to a four-second win over Division II Grand Valley State. DiPalma also guided the Herons to a bronze medal at the Liberty League Rowing Championships last month.

“Abbie has been a stand-out since she joined our team as a walk-on,” William Smith Crew Head Coach Sandra Chu said. “She has grace under pressure, excellent steering, and is quick to make changes. I’m very excited for her to take advantage of this camp and know that she will not only learn a great deal, but also be an amazing representative of William Smith.”

DiPalma recently accepted the Crew Coaches Beyond Her Limits Award at the 2007 William Smith Athletics Awards banquet. Chu can’t say enough about the first-year’s abilities.

“Abbie is exciting to coach because she soaks up knowledge like a sponge and her lively intelligence enables her to apply new information immediately. She’s a natural leader and motivator and implicitly understands the impact she makes in a boat.”

William Smith, which is the No. 1 team in the latest NCAA Division III Women’s Rowing Committee New York Regional ranking, is back on the water on May 12-13 in the ECAC Rowing Championships on Whitney Point (N.Y.) Lake.

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