Tulsa Rowers Sign Five to National Letters-of-Intent

Tulsa Head Rowing Coach Kevin Harris announced the five new student-athletes signed to The University of Tulsa during the November early signing period, including Caitlin Barry, Mikala Burns, Lucy Coleman, Paige Hallam and Summer Neary.

"I am really pleased with our 2017 early commitments," Harris said. "It's clear from this class that we are seeing more and more interest from Commonwealth countries because of the quality of what they see at Tulsa. Our recruiting coordinator, Coach Kerry Hassall, has done an excellent job identifying these student-athletes and they are going to be solid contributors as we move forward."

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Caitlin Barry is a former rower for Oxford Brookes University in the United Kingdom. She is also an open water swimmer. Barry, who hails from County Antrim, Northern Ireland, helped her Eight win the Women's Henley in 2015. She will join TU as a graduate student in August and will pursue her master's degree in business while completing her eligibility.

"Caitlin will bring maturity and speed to our team that is only going to improve the women around her," Harris said. "She is an exciting student-athlete and is exactly the type of woman we look to recruit to Tulsa. She has a bright future ahead of her here."

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Mikala Burns rowed for St. Peter's School and Cambridge Rowing Club in Cambridge, New Zealand. She will join her former teammate Bayley Macdonald at Tulsa. Burns comes to TU having stroked Cambridge RC to silver medals in the Club and Senior Eights at the 2016 New Zealand Rowing Championships. She also successfully stroked St Peter's Quad and Eight to fourth-place finishes at the AON Maadi Cup. Burns will join the Golden Hurricane in January 2017.

"I have watched Mikala's results with interest for the past year and have been really impressed," commented Harris. "It's fun to reunite successful teammates and seek to continue that winning chemistry at Tulsa."

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Lucy Coleman is a lightweight rower from Queensland, Australia. She rowed for St. Hilda's School and in 2015, she helped her Schoolgirl Eight to a bronze medal and her Pair to a gold medal at the Queensland School State Championships. Coleman also earned a seat on the Rowing Queensland squad. At the 2016 Sydney International Rowing Regatta, she earned a gold medal in both the U21 Quad and U21 Interstate Youth Eight, while also garnering a silver medal in the U19 Pair.

"Lucy was a late addition to our class and one that I was pleased that Coach Hassall found," said Harris. "She has been a tremendous rower for both Queensland and St Hilda's. She has really shown her hunger for excellence through competition. Every coach wants that on their team and we are looking forward to seeing Lucy next fall."

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A lightweight rower from Hamilton, New Zealand, Paige Hallam rowed for Hillcrest High School. As a senior, she turned in a first-place finish in the U18 Pair at the North Island Secondary School Championships. During her junior season, she was selected to the U18 North Island team for the North vs. South Regatta and helped her Quad finish first and her Eight finish second. Hallam also recorded a second-place mark in the Four at the 2015 NISS Championships. She will be rejoining former North Island teammate Bayley Macdonald at Tulsa.

"We have been very fortunate with our New Zealand recruiting," commented Harris. "Paige is someone that Coach Hassall had been following for quite some time. We were able to get a sense of her strength and commitment early in the process. We are all really excited to see her here and know she is going to make an instant impact at TU."

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Summer Neary is a lightweight rower with the Whitemarsh Boat Club in Philadelphia, Pa. She turned in a 12^th-place finish in the Quad at the 2016 Royal Canadian Henley and a sixth-place performance at the 2016 Head of the Schuylkill Regatta.

"Summer is a woman with Oklahoma roots who is excited to be returning 'home' to start college," Harris said. "She will be bringing with her all of the fire and experience of rowing in Philly and we are looking forward to having her in our lightweight boats. Our Philly area recruits have done really well at Tulsa and Summer will add to that tradition."

Tulsa Rowers Sign Five to National Letters-of-Intent

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