East Jordan's Sophie Snyder rows to Michigan
Dec. 24—EAST JORDAN — Sophie Snyder still has only tried rowing once.
Yet the University of Michigan finds her perfect for its team, matching up so well with the athlete profile for rowers that the Wolverines pursued her out of the blue water.
"I didn't even really know it was an option until they reached out," Snyder said. "Then I really started thinking about it."
The East Jordan senior signed this week with the Wolverines rowing team, where she'll go as a preferred walk-on with promises of a scholarship if she makes varsity.
Snyder owns the kind of build rowing teams covet — tall and athletic. Her work ethic and a 4.0 grade-point average complete the package.
"She's a very versatile athlete," Red Devils softball coach Meg Kitson said. "She's strong and has a very strong, athletic build. She swims with a team, and that's a commitment in itself, because East Jordan doesn't have a team."
Snyder plays three sports for the Devils and swims for two club squads — the Cruisers and the Northern Michigan Narwhals, based in Kalkaska and East Jordan, respectively.
"She's very focused, even more so now that she has a new task on the horizon," Kitson said. "I'm a big Michigan fan, so I'm excited she's going there."
The 5-foot-11 senior takes winter off from Red Devils sports to focus on swimming, in which she broke a youth state record in the 50-yard backstroke and is ranked by Swimcloud.com as one of the top 90 swimmers in the state.
After interest from Michigan for rowing last spring, she gave it a try once this summer and traveled to Fountain Point on Lake Leelanau to visit with the team and get on the water instead of in it. She also took an official visit to Michigan to watch practice and meet the coaches. There, she also met her future teammates and saw the lake the Wolverines practice on about 15 minutes from the Ann Arbor campus.
"It's a lot different than any of the other sports I've played," Snyder said. "It's an intense sport because it's so technical and physically demanding. The teamwork aspect is very cool."
A First-Team All-Lake Michigan Conference selection at outside hitter in volleyball this fall, Snyder also pitches and plays outfield for the Red Devils and runs track during the spring season, specializing in the hurdles, high jump and 200-meter dash.
Before Michigan came calling for rowing, Snyder drew interest from multiple Division 1 swim programs, including the University of Toledo.
"The first time I went to Michigan, I just thought it was awesome," she said.
Kitson gets an even more up-close view of Snyder's body of work. A manager at The Landing restaurant on the other side of Lake Charlevoix, Kitson hired Snyder to work there. (Snyder's mother, Laura, coaches volleyball at EJ, and her father, Kris, helps lead the Narwhal swim team.)
The 30-year softball coach at East Jordan said she's looking forward not only to Snyder's evolution into a rower but her continued growth on the diamond as well.
"By the end of the year last year, she was swinging the bat so well," Kitson said. "I'm looking forward to what she can do this year."
