Wesley Ng announces resignation as Penn women’s rowing coach

PHILADELPHIA CREAM – The head coach of women’s rowing at the University of Pennsylvania, Wesley Ngannounced his resignation to take the head coaching position at the University of Virginia.

“Leaving Penn is bittersweet as I reflect on the incredible journey of the last nine years,” said Ng, who was named Penn’s head coach in July 2015. “I am proud of what we have accomplished together, since winning the program’s first award, the NCAA team’s desire to compete internationally at Henley for the first time and working with our alumni to complete the Burk-Bergman Boathouse program is more vital than ever, and with. such support from the Penn Rowing community, the future is incredibly bright.

“I want to express my deepest gratitude to the student-athletes, their families and my fellow coaches for allowing me to play a role in this significant effort. Your dedication, hard work and passion for moving our boats forward quickly together will be a common thread that binds you together for years to come. For my wife Kate, my son AJ and me, Penn Women’s Rowing has been an unforgettable and huge part of our lives and will always hold a special place in our hearts.

“I am grateful to Wes for all of his efforts in leading our women’s rowing program to national prominence,” said Alanna Wren, director of athletics and recreation at T. Gibbs Kane, Jr. W’69. “He leaves Penn women’s rowing in a better place than he found it, and the program’s infrastructure, including the renovated Burk-Bergman Boathouse, will make it an attractive opportunity for the next leader. to Wes and his family the best of luck in his next chapter in Charlottesville.

Ng was the Ivy League and Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) Region I D1 Coach of the Year following the 2023 spring season, and the same year he and his assistant coaches Kumari Lewis and Helen Samaniego was named ACCR Region I (Division 1) Staff Member of the Year. Ng’s tenure saw the program reach unprecedented heights, among them…

*Penn has qualified for the NCAA championship each of the last three years, the first three times the Quakers qualified as a team. (Penn had a Four compete in the 1998 Championship). After finishing tied for 11th place with SMU in 2022 with 72 points, Penn improved its position to sixth place with 92 points in 2023. In this 2023 championship, the Quakers’ Varsity Eight finished fourth, the Second Varsity Eight took ninth place and the Varsity Four improved. his placement from the previous year by finishing 16th. The Quakers finished in the top 10 again in 2024 and made history as all three boats finished in the top 12, with 1V8 finishing 10th and 2V8 and V4A beating their pre-race seeds in taking 10th and 11th respectively.

*Penn’s Varsity Eight won its first three medals in program history at the Ivy League Championship, finishing second in 2023 and 2024 and third in 2018, while the Second Varsity Eight won bronze in 2022 and 2023 In 2023, Penn finished third in both categories. overall ranking (66) and NCAA boat (38) in Ivies.

*Over the past two years, the Varsity Eight went 63-7 during the regular season while the 2V8 went 57-8 (including a staggering 29-1 in 2023, with the only loss coming in Princeton during the last race of the regular season).

*Penn made her debut at the Henley Women’s Regatta and Henley Royal Regatta in 2023, with the Quakers’ Varsity Eight making it all the way to the Island Challenge Cup final at the Royal Regatta before falling by the lowest of margins against the champion of the British University of Oxford. Brookes in title race.

*Penn has seen ten women earn CRCA All-America honors, with Josie Konopka And Sammy Morton becoming the second and third women in program history to be named to the All-America first team.


*The program’s student-athletes have totaled 75 CCCA National Scholar-Athlete recognitions during its tenure, including a program-high 14 in 2023 and at least 12 every year since 2021.

The search for a new head women’s rowing coach will begin immediately.

 

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