Next year, Tommy Stoffel ‘25 will continue his rowing journey for the Cardinals of Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. Stoffel is the current captain of the Skyline High School Crew Team. For Stoffel, this journey started in elementary school, when he tried out rowing as an alternative to playing as a goalie in soccer. 

“The only reason I got into rowing was because I was a really bad goalie, so then my uncle came to my dad and said, ‘He’s a big kid. Why don’t you just put him into rowing for a bit?,’” said Stoffel.

He joined the Learn to Row program at Washtenaw Rowing Center and would go there once a week. This was a light commitment for him, as although he had an uncle who went to the Olympics in the early ‘90s for rowing and cousins who were also into rowing, his immediate family was relatively far removed from the sport. In ninth grade, Stoffel came to the realization that he was good at rowing, and along with this realization came a heightened sense of competitive spirit. 

“Freshman year, I made it to nationals and I got ninth there,” said Stoffel.

After this competitive start to high school rowing, Stoffel would face some challenges in the next year, which tested his commitment to the sport. While in ninth grade, he rowed in a single by himself, he transitioned to a double in his sophomore year, with a new partner, Rowen Tindell ‘26.

“It was our first year together, so we didn’t do too hot,” said Stoffel. “I think we got mid-pack at Midwests, which wasn’t great.” 

This was a difficult time for Stoffel, who thought about quitting then. After some self-reflection, he noted how helpful rowing was toward helping him decompress after school and how meaningful the competitive aspect of the sport was to him, which gave him a new energy as he went into his junior year. And things would be different the next year, as Stoffel and Tindell found their pace and went on to win Midwests and place fifth at nationals (the Scholastic Rowing Association of America National Championship). 

“It has been an honor to be able to row with Tommy for over two years,” said Tindell. “He has always had a great work ethic and some ambitious goals. Our chemistry then turned those goals into a reality.” 

This ambition and work ethic opened the door for Stoffel to be able to compete at the next level. 

“I thought that I’m good at it, [so] I might as well continue to do this, and if it could get me into a good college, then that’s great,” said Stoffel. “I really like the sport [and] I’m a competitive person, so it was just a natural continuation for me.”

Stoffel had the help of his coach, Head Coach of the Skyline Crew Team Kit Bennett, with finding potential rowing programs.

“I’ve spoken to college coaches on Tommy’s behalf,” said Bennett. “You’ve got to find an academic fit first, and then work out the rowing piece second, because athletics and college [are] a big commitment. You’re doing 20 hours of athletics a week and you go out to get a degree. No one’s going to be a professional rower, that doesn’t exist, so we really encourage athletes to find the right school fit first.”

Stoffel also knew what he wanted out of a potential college, which led him to see Wesleyan as a top option for him.

“Schools for men to commit to rowing are almost exclusively on the east coast because that has a big rowing culture there, which is fine, because I wanted to go to the east coast anyway.” said Stoffel. “I firstly chose [Wesleyan] on academics and secondly on rowing. Wesleyan has a really good government program. A lot of people from the State Department come from there, so I thought it was good.”

Out of his top options, what led Stoffel to select Wesleyan over the others was the Wesleyan Crew Team’s dynamic.

“What sold me on Wesleyan is the people on the team at Wesleyan seemed like they were all friends and that just seemed cool,” said Stoffel. “The other ones seemed like they were kind of just committing for a job.”

Stoffel’s teammate Clara Thorne ‘26 could confirm that team culture is indeed important to Stoffel.

“He’s been great before races, like he would give us some pre-race talks to get us locked in for the race and he’s been really great for the new kids and the success of the Greenhills [rowers],” said Thorne.

Stoffel’s coach can also confirm the same and his praises of Stoffel’s performance as a member and leader of the Skyline Crew team pointed toward his faith in Stoffel’s next steps as a rower.

“Tommy was voted by his peers to be a captain, which I think speaks volumes to what his teammates feel about him,” said Bennett. “I think he’s a pretty sensitive soul. I think he cares about the team, like it means a lot to him. We really enjoyed having him on the team and we’re gonna miss him when he leaves. We are really excited to see him take his next steps in college.”