Aug. 23, 2003
By JEFF EISENBERG
SANTA CRUZ SENTINEL CORRESPONDENT
Each time Maria Bokulich plunged her oar into the icy water of the Spokane River during her freshman year, her heart sank right along with it.
The former standout hoopster at Soquel High yearned to return to the court at Gonzaga University. Bokulich, who will enter her senior year with the Zags, had passed up the chance to play for the school's basketball team in exchange for a spot on the women's rowing squad. She still played in pick-up games whenever her bustling schedule permitted and inevitably shot free throws in the gym to calm her nerves after a particularly arduous rowing practice.
"Rowing just wasn't the same at first," said Bokulich, who graduated from Soquel in 2000. "For eight years, I had lived basketball and dreamed basketball. Even when I was sitting in class, I would have plays running through my head. To have to give up the sport was very difficult."
But these days Bokulich couldn't be happier with her decision to paddle into uncharted waters. The Santa Cruz-area resident led Gonzaga to its seventh straight West Coast Conference rowing title last season as a junior and has a realistic chance to earn a spot on the U.S. National Team within the next two years.
"She's an athlete with a lot of potential because of her strength and technique," Gonzaga women's rowing coach Glenn Putryae said. "Her athletic experience as a basketball player and her team mentality have helped us a lot over the last three years."
After leading Soquel to the Central Coast Section Division II quarterfinals as a senior, Bokulich drew interest from several basketball programs at small in-state colleges but chose to attend Gonzaga instead. She survived a series of tryouts her freshman year and ultimately secured a place on the Zags' crowded basketball roster, but she never played a game for the squad.
When Gonzaga women's basketball coach, Kelly Graves, informed Bokulich that she would likely spend most of her four years collecting splinters on the bench, she began to evaluate her options. One of those options was rowing.
"I had never heard of rowing in my life, but my coach (Putryae) saw me on campus one day, and convinced me to come try it out," Bokulich said. "After two months, he approached me and said I had the potential to make the national team and row in the Olympics one day. Hearing that really left me no choice but to drop basketball and give rowing a try."
With a promise from Graves that she could return to the basketball team in the spring if she didn't enjoy rowing, Bokulich dove right into the new sport. She excelled in practice on the ergometer - a device which measures the amount of energy expended while rowing - regularly beating all of her teammates and many of the members of the Zags' men's rowing squad.
While giving up basketball was difficult for Bokulich, the lessons she learned on the court in high school helped her surpass even her own expectations as a rower.
"Basketball taught me a lot about discipline and confidence," she said. "The two sports go hand in hand. If you miss a free throw one night, you can lose a game. It's the same with rowing. One bad stroke can cost you a race."
These days Bokulich is completely devoted to rowing. She earned second-team All-American honors last season, and won a gold medal with the Vesper Boat Club at the 121st Royal Canadian Henley earlier this month. Although she still plays basketball occasionally and attends many of the Zags' home games, Bokulich is secure in her decision.
"She didn't just want to be a part of a team," Putryae said. "She wanted to make an impact."
Since picking up an oar for the first time three years ago, Bokulich has done just that.
