Support the Rowing Team
Ohio State Women’s Rowing — Support the team through the Bow Ball Club
If you want to get right to it, no questions asked, you can follow this link to start the gifting process.
If you want more information on what the Bow Ball Club is, how donations have helped us in the past and how they can help us in the future, we suggest reading the information below and reaching out if you have further questions. Contact information can be found towards the bottom of the page.
Our Legacy
Since 1995, the Ohio State Women’s Rowing team has been a staple of Ohio State Athletics—built on grit, teamwork, and the relentless pursuit of excellence. Our athletes train year-round, balancing rigorous academic schedules with a sport that demands physical power, mental toughness, and unity.
From the beginning, our community has helped fuel our success. Support from alumni, businesses, individuals, families, and friends has allowed us to maintain equipment, support our student-athletes, and keep the team on the cutting edge.
Rowing is a sport where no one moves forward alone. Every stroke counts. Every athlete matters. And every supporter helps our boats go faster.
Why Your Support Matters
Just as a boat can’t surge ahead without eight rowers applying pressure together, our program relies on collective support to reach the bow ball of the competition. Your contribution—at any level—pushes us closer to our goals and improves the experience we provide our student-athletes.
- In the past, contributions to Ohio State Women's Rowing through our support fund, the Bow Ball Club, have helped us:
- Maintain and update our fleet of racing shells
- Create and install two Olympian recognition areas
- Purchase trailers to drive to and from regattas and store launches in winter
- Test and purchase a new, more advanced style of blade from Croker
- Provide the team with meals before football games, home races, and other occasions
- Support athletes as they pursue national team goals
- Update our spaces with state of the art equipment and design elements
- Purchase telemetry systems for the boats
- Fund an international trip to Henley Royal Regatta
- Bring in guest speakers like Olympian Megan Musnicki and leadership coach Miranda Holder
- Create a championship ring collection that will always remain with the team
- As we look to the future, we need Bow Ball Club members to help us:
- Honor teams, student-athletes, and legends from the past
- Continue to update our spaces to remain competitive with other programs and provide a modern day-to-day experience for our athletes
- This could be things like: painting walls with the correct colors, updating Ohio State logos so they aren't peeling off the walls, adding a "retired boat names" wall so boat names of the past don't just disappear, and more
- Purchase a new trailer to transport boats to and from regattas safely
- Bring in new racing shells so our fleet is the top of the line equipment
- Maintain and turnover all of the equipment we use like ergs, erg bikes, blades, cox boxes, and more
- Fund parts of our training trips or team travel
- Meals, sleeper buses, better flight paths/times, late check out so they can shower after racing and more
- Provide elite experiences for athletes at home and as we travel
Giving Levels — From the Start Line to the bow ball and until we have Open Water
In rowing, nothing moves without a powerful start — and the same is true for supporting our program. Ohio State Women’s Rowing launched in 1995, and as we celebrate 30 years of grit, growth, and championship tradition, we invite you to start with us.
For potential donors who may be unfamiliar with our sport, the name of each tier is something that is impactful to rowers during a race. Being one seat up means you have momentum but the race is close, walking means you are gaining on another crew and putting yourself in a powerful position, bow to stern means you have a significant lead, and open water indicates you have crushed the competition and have a gap of water between your boat and the other boat.
During a race, if you have taken seats and walked up on a boat, your coxswain is likely to call “bow ball” indicating you have overtaken the opposing crew and have a dominant position in the race. It can be incredibly challenging to reach another crew’s bow ball but when you get there and your coxswain yells “bow ball”, you know you have the momentum in the race.
Our Start Line level begins at $30 per month or $300 for the year — a simple commitment that fuels big momentum. If you choose to start at this amount, you will be in the Bow Ball Club for the year. If you choose to pull even harder, additional levels offer expanded benefits while helping our athletes move the boat forward.
Join the team. Take the first stroke. Help us push ahead for the next 30 years.
Bow Ball Club Membership:
The tiered structure below outlines the benefits of each level. Each successive level receives the benefits of that level and all levels preceding it.
Start Line — $30 monthly or $300
- This is the entry level for the Bow Ball Club and is aimed at honoring the program’s thirty year history
- Bow Ball Club vinyl sticker
- Email updates once per semester on projects and purchases we have been able to make through the support of the Bow Ball Club as well as updates from student-athletes and coaches about progress and highlights
- To get on the start line, click here
One Seat Up — $750
- Locker nameplate to celebrate your contribution
- Ohio State Rowing coffee mug
- To help us take a seat, click here
Walking — $1,250
- Signed, framed team photo
- To help us walk on the other crews, click here
Bow to Stern Finish — $2,500
- Invitation to a team pre-race dinner
- To make the “bow ball” call, click here
Open Water Finish — $5,000
- Naming rights for a single (1x) shell (name must meet team and trademark guidelines)
- Going for open water? Click here
Podium Finish — $10,000+
- All of the above and so much more. This is your chance to make a statement and leave a legacy for others to see and follow.
- If you want to get on the podium, no questions asked, click here
- If you want more information about the Podium Finish, how you can impact the program, and how we will honor your generosity and support, contact Head Coach Emily Gackowski (gackowski.6@osu.edu) or Development Officer Austin Collinson (collinson.10@osu.edu)
