Meet the Junior's Coaches
If you would like to contact a coach, please use the Coach Contact button at the bottom of the page.
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Joe Connelly - Head Coach for Dayton Boat Club and Women's Head CoachJoe Connelly discovered rowing as a high school freshman after a very brief, failed attempt at a football career. He found a home at the Cincinnati Juniors Rowing Club (CJRC) throughout high school and began coaching there as a freshman in college. During his time with CJRC, Joe coached both Novice Boys and Girls to numerous regional championships and served on the staff for Development Camps which won consecutive Royal Canadian Henleys.
Joe joined the Dayton Boat Club (DBC) in 2016 as the Head Novice Coach before transitioning to Girls Varsity Coach in 2018 and then DBC Head Coach in 2019. He has coached many girls’ crews to both regional championships and the grand finals at Youth Nationals. Recently, Joe has also served as a staff and assistant coach for several Youth Regional Challenges and a Selection Development Camp. Joe is a veteran who served in the United States Marine Corps from 2003 until 2012 and deployed twice to Iraq. He has traveled the world and held various instructor and team leadership roles while in the service. He currently lives in Dayton with his son and enjoys wrestling with small outboard motors. taking over gym classes to teach rowing, devising creative shell repairs, obsessing over weather and river conditions, and all the other little things rowing coaches do to keep their clubs afloat. Joe is a USRowing Level 3 Certified Coach and the DBC Safety Officer. |
Mike Wenker - Head Men's Coach
As a freshman at St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati, OH, Mike Wenker started rowing at Cincinnati Rowing Center before the program became Cincinnati Junior Rowing Club. He then rowed four years at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY where he earned a bachelor’s in economics.
After college, Mike coached novices at Saratoga Rowing Association before returning to Cincinnati Juniors to assist with the novice girls in spring 1999, leading them to earn 5 gold medals at Midwest Scholastic Rowing Championships with an undefeated 1st Novice 8+.
In fall 2000, Mike became the Cincinnati Juniors varsity girls coach, leading them to an undefeated season with a victory over Ohio State University at the Speakmon Regatta in Columbus and a national championship that spring. The team collected two more national championships in 2002 and 2003 and 35 gold medals at Midwest Junior Rowing Championships (2000-2007).
Mike went on to become an assistant coach at Hamilton College (2008) and West Virginia University (2008-2010) before taking over the University of Dayton women’s rowing program in fall 2010. Under Mike’s leadership, the teams were athletically and academically successful, recording many medals during his fifteen-year tenure.
Mike has also coached at many USRowing Development Camps in Saratoga Springs, NY and Orlando, FL, and hosted the juniors selection development camp in 2023.
Mike resides in Kettering with his partner Jeni Gerard and their three (mostly) very good dogs, Winnie, Murphy, and Cannoli.
Mike is a USRowing Level 2 Certified Coach and working on Level 3.
After college, Mike coached novices at Saratoga Rowing Association before returning to Cincinnati Juniors to assist with the novice girls in spring 1999, leading them to earn 5 gold medals at Midwest Scholastic Rowing Championships with an undefeated 1st Novice 8+.
In fall 2000, Mike became the Cincinnati Juniors varsity girls coach, leading them to an undefeated season with a victory over Ohio State University at the Speakmon Regatta in Columbus and a national championship that spring. The team collected two more national championships in 2002 and 2003 and 35 gold medals at Midwest Junior Rowing Championships (2000-2007).
Mike went on to become an assistant coach at Hamilton College (2008) and West Virginia University (2008-2010) before taking over the University of Dayton women’s rowing program in fall 2010. Under Mike’s leadership, the teams were athletically and academically successful, recording many medals during his fifteen-year tenure.
Mike has also coached at many USRowing Development Camps in Saratoga Springs, NY and Orlando, FL, and hosted the juniors selection development camp in 2023.
Mike resides in Kettering with his partner Jeni Gerard and their three (mostly) very good dogs, Winnie, Murphy, and Cannoli.
Mike is a USRowing Level 2 Certified Coach and working on Level 3.
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Spencer Mullins - Men's CoachSpencer began rowing in 2012 as an 8th grader at GDRA. He sculled through high school at GDRA while attending Chaminade Julienne and qualified for youth nationals 3 times in the lightweight double, winning the event at Midwest in 2016 and helping GDRA secure the boy’s sculling team points trophy that year. Spencer continued his rowing career at Purdue University for their club team for 2 years before retiring from competitive rowing to focus on his studies. Spencer joined DBC as a coach in the late winter of 2023.
Spencer resides in Dayton and works as a test engineer for Leonardo DRS in Beavercreek and focuses on testing and troubleshooting EW systems and Naval Link-11/22 radio modems. Spencer is a USRowing Level 2 Certified Coach. |
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Scott Braum - Women's CoachScott comes to the DBC staff as the parent of a former DBC rower who has graduated from college and is now coaching in Ann Arbor. He has spent a lifetime involved in every aspect of youth sports from athlete to parent to coach to booster to administrator. While he has a passion for youth sports in general, he has seen firsthand the impact that rowing can have on a child’s life, whether he or she is a gifted natural athlete or a scrappy kid with a big heart who just won’t quit. He believes that rowing offers each athlete an opportunity to learn things about themselves and others both on and off the water. When his daughter came home from Learn To Row years ago, she told him she wanted to quit everything she was doing in order to row. That, of course, sounded crazy. Now, however, after several years, countless thousands of miles, who knows how many scorching, freezing, and storming races, and his own inglorious rowing career, he is thrilled to have the opportunity to continue the craziness by giving something back to the sport that has impacted his family in so many ways.
Scott is a USRowing Level 1 Certified Coach. |
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Sara Bauersfeld - Women's CoachBefore discovering rowing, Sara spent years playing basketball and learning from coaches who knew how to teach, mentor, and motivate players. She stumbled into rowing at the invitation from a friend in college which led her to the University of Kansas, where she fell in love with the sport rowing for the women's crew team for two years.
Sara spent her summers in college with the Girl Scouts at camps on the Lake of the Ozarks as a lifeguard, archery instructor, and trek leader. She encouraged girls to embrace adventure on water and land and to face new challenges with undaunted spirits. Joining the DBC coaching staff in 2023, Sara has come full circle and enjoys the opportunity to merge her love for rowing with the mentorship of young athletes. In her life outside of rowing parent and coach, Sara is an ER nurse who enjoys spending time with her family and staying active. Sara is a USRowing Level 1 Certified Coach |