Atlantic City senior Lexi Gormley to row this week for USA U-19 team in Canada (2024)

Lexi Gormley kept an open mind when it came to her high school sports career.

As a result, the Atlantic City High School senior is rowing in the red, white and blue of the United States this week.

Gormley, 17, is a member of the U.S. women’s U-19 four with coxswain at the World U-19 championships in St. Catharines, Canada. Gormley was one of three New Jersey athletes to make the 41-member male and female USA team.

“Being picked to be on the Junior National team has been my motivating factor in all the workouts,” Gormley said in a phone interview Saturday. “The early mornings, the late nights. This is something I knew I wanted to do. I wanted to represent my country.”

How Gormley became a crew standout is a testament to being a multisport athlete. She arrived at Atlantic City High School as a basketball standout. The Margate resident started for the Vikings’ varsity team as a freshman.

“I was convinced that basketball was going to be the end game for me,” she said. “It took a lot of convincing from my basketball coach, my crew coach and my parents saying, ‘You have to at least give (crew) a shot.’”

Crew is part of the culture for those who grow up on Absecon Island. Gormley’s father, Sean, rowed for Temple University and the Atlantic City Beach Patrol.

“I kind of grew up knowing crew would be somewhere in my path,” she said.

But before her freshman season at Atlantic City, Gormley’s rowing experience consisted solely of the Chicken Dippers Summer Rowing Program, an introductory course in Ventnor Heights. Atlantic City girls crew coach Sean Duffey made a deal with Gormley when she was a freshman.

“I told her, ‘Give me two weeks. If you don’t like the sport, you can quit. I’ll still say hi to you in the hallway,’” Duffey said. “I knew once she came out to row she would love it.”

There was a period of adjustment, however.

“I did not like it at first, but I really found my groove,” Gormley said, “and figured ... out this is for me. What you put into the sport is what you get out of it. The hard work aspect really hooked me.”

Gormley eventually became so enamored with crew that she gave up basketball after her sophom*ore season.

“In the crew world, I was getting noticed (from college coaches),” she said. “There were some pretty big-name schools. I thought this is what I love to do, and if this is opening a door here, I totally want to pursue it.”

Vikings girls basketball coach Jason Lantz supported Gormley’s decision to focus on crew, something that wouldn’t have happened at every South Jersey high school.

“When you have an opportunity, especially a golden opportunity, you have to go after it,” Lantz said. “You’re talking about her being very good at basketball but extremely great at crew and rowing. She went from playing AAU basketball to trying out for a national team. There’s no comparison. Our goal is to get kids in school and give them the best opportunity to shine, and she’s shining above and beyond.”

Gormley impressed coaches and USA Rowing with her erg scores. She broke seven minutes for a 2K erg test as a 16-year-old. Under eight minutes is considered a good score.

“That’s pretty phenomenal,” Duffey said. “Her size and her strength and her cardio really stand out. She’s got what it takes to go to the next level.”

Two years ago, Gormley attended USA Rowing’s Olympic Development Program. Last year she attended the Selection Development Program. This summer she was one of 30 female rowers invited to the Selection Camp in Chula Vista, which is located outside San Diego.

Gormley overcame the odds to make the team. She was competing against athletes from warm-weather states who are able to row year-round.

The women’s four with coxswain competition at the World U-19 championships will begin Thursday. The final is scheduled for Sunday.

“I’m so ecstatic to race,” Gormley said, “just because of all the double practices and hard work we’ve been putting in for the past month. I think we’ve found some really good speed and connection as a boat.”

Crew has opened plenty of doors for Gormley. Not only will she compete for a world championship this weekend, but she has committed to row for Stanford University, where she plans to major in economics. Stanford won the 2023 NCAA Division I rowing championship and finished second last year.

“I just feel like Stanford is really what I was looking for in a college,” she said. “The team energy really matched the energy I was looking for. My relationship with the coaches, overall team dynamic and everything the school had to offer. It was (the school) that wouldn’t leave my mind.”

Many high school athletes limit themselves to one sport these days. Who knows what opportunities they miss by never even considering other sports?

Gormley hasn’t looked back since the first day she picked up an oar.

“Taking time away from basketball made me realize I wasn’t enjoying it the way I once did,” Gormley said. “It wasn’t the end game. But when I tried crew the whole dynamic of the sport matched my energy and was what I wanted to do. It was a no-brainer to pursue it, and it took me along its path.”