Meuleman

Growing up within walking distance of the Montlake Cut, Ava Meuleman remembers from a young age watching the Huskies row. “All of the blades would click. Everything looked so perfect.  And I would think to myself, ‘Wow, that looks so cool,'” she recounted.Inspired at a young age to take up rowing, Ava took her first strokes at the age of eleven rowing out of the Pocock Rowing Center, eventually racing as an eighth grader, and then rowing in the varsity program while attending Roosevelt High School. But even with that extensive experience, she questioned whether she could meet the expectations at Washington. “I always wanted to go here, I love Seattle and I love the sport… but I questioned whether I was fast enough to make it,” she said.Team is a word that Ava uses frequently, but with a sense of reverence and gratitude. “Washington is different because of the team,” she states. “It is a group of women that have a willingness to work when it is really hard. They do it with a lot of heart and grit, everyone cares so much and you can see it in the work. It is about finding the joy in all of it, and lifting people up around you, and it is constant, always present. Our coaches have a big influence, but a big emphasis in that is on us creating our own culture and our own team.”Since her freshman year Ava has consistently found herself in the stroke seat, moving into the Varsity 8 as stroke for the NCAA’s last year. “It’s natural if it’s done right,” she said, “to feel the boat, laying down a rhythm that everyone can push down hard, a happy medium, staying consistent and positive and keeping a cool head.”Majoring in Cellular Molecular Developmental Biology, Ava is considering a career in research or continuing a graduate education. But she still has her senior season ahead of her, one filled with change as the team embarks on their first season in the Big Ten.  “We’ve got a lot of fast frosh coming in and I am really excited to see what opportunities the move to the Big Ten brings,” she said. “But as a senior, my role becomes different… I watched as a freshman how the upperclassmen interacted with the younger people. The mutual respect, the care and love that was given freely, and I remember thinking ‘I want to be that for someone else.’ I want to contribute to that. It doesn’t matter what boat you are in, everyone cares for each other, not just in rowing, but in life. I am so looking forward to seeing what all of us together can accomplish this year.”This story originally appeared in the Fall, 2024, edition of SWEEP Magazine. Click the link at the upper-right of this page to read the entire edition.
 “I think back to the 2V my sophomore year,” she continued (stroking the 2V8 to Pac-12 gold and NCAA silver). “Spring season was so amazing.  The 2V was so positive and gritty. (Coach) Gordon described it as everyone just puts their head down and works super hard. We had a couple of seniors in there and we wanted to pull so hard for them… we were tightly bonded and rowed for each other, and that’s why it ended up being so special.”
Ava places a high value on the women that came before her at Washington. “For a lot of us, it’s knowing that when you’re on the erg, or about to race and you’re nervous, we have all these posters and photos that bring a reminder that so many other women have sat in this position and they lived to tell the tale.  It brings a sense of calm and also purpose.  It’s a legacy of hard work and teamwork and a culture that feeds that and teaches determination and self-motivation… and confidence.””My first day as a walk-on freshman I was in the Shellhouse and I was overwhelmed… so much history, the pictures on the walls, everything. We had a 6k test a few days later–I remember that–and I went out so hard that I completely crashed. That was my first initiation (laughing). But I also remember later that fall and into the winter doing pieces on the water with my team and thinking ‘this is why I do this.’ The team was so amazing, so supportive… and I began to find my confidence.”