Adirondack Sports June 2024

28 Adirondack Sports
ATHLETE
PROFILE
Lisa
Chase
AGE: 38
RESIDENCE: Delmar
FAMILY: Husband, Lance; Kids,
Addie, 6, and Will, 4
OCCUPATION: Elementary Math
Specialist, North Colonie Schools
SPORTS: Running, Rowing
▲ SAMANTHA MARTENS PHOTOGRAPHY
▲ SCULLING.
By Kristen Hislop
Embracing Opportunities
as They Come
Have you ever wondered what might
have been like if you had had someone
who saw something in you early on?
Did Lisa D’Aniello Chase ever think she
would be on the National Team USA
lightweight double sculls (rowing) as a
U23? Did she ever imagine she would be
vying for a Guinness World Record with
her kids? As a high schooler the answer
would be a resounding no, but she’s
done both and more!
As a kid growing up in Rocky Hill,
Conn., Lisa was active, cycling around
town with her father Joe and playing softball
coached by mom Ellen. She was also
known to be a rather good runner. As a 7th
grader she ran undefeated. After moving
to competitive NYS Section 2 athletics
and the Niskayuna School District in 9th
grade, Lisa continued to run. She made
varsity cross-country but says as the race
distances got longer, “Significantly more
training completely wore me out, physically
and mentally. I developed bad shin
splints and barely finished the season. It
was the first of many signs that my body
does not do well with high mileage. That
cross-country season turned me off distance
running for YEARS. When spring
track rolled around, I mainly ran the 400
and was happy with that.”
Deciding not to run cross-country in
the fall, she picked up rowing. As a sophomore
she was learning a new sport that
needed not only strength and power but
also technique. “I did not master the technique
easily but had great stamina due to
my years of running and I loved being on
the water. I continued to row, coached by
the late Matt Hopkins, my remaining fall
seasons of high school, and by my senior
year, while my technique was still pretty
weak, my ergometer times were competitive
for a lightweight (under 130 pounds)
so I started to think that maybe I’d row in
college,” she says.
As a senior it was late to be looking for
scholarships and collegiate rowing opportunities.
Lisa knew she wanted to teach
after college, so a strong early education
program was her focus. She had a list of
schools, but it was a chance presentation
by Marist College faculty at a college fair
that led her to the Red Foxes. She had
continued to run at Niskayuna, primarily
under coaches John Sharkey and Mike
Peters, who encouraged good performances,
but also focused on fun.
She didn’t consider running in college,
but also wasn’t ready to say goodbye
to the sport. As a Division I school,
the cross-country and track & field team
scholarship had been doled out by the
time she made her academic decision.
Walking on (hitting times in tryouts) was
a definite possibility after speaking with
the coaches. In hindsight, the break from
running might have been better for Lisa.
She says of high school runners, “Almost
every single one of my running teammates
who had been recruited struggled. They
either peaked in high school and couldn’t
get those times again in college or started
out pretty strong as college freshmen
but ended up too injured under the heavy
training to finish successfully.”
At Marist, while in the Elementary Ed
program, the draw to racing sports was too
strong. She had balanced two sports along
with advanced placement and honors
classes in high school, so why not give it
a go in college. She had been on an unofficial
visit with the rowing team, which at
the time did not offer scholarships. She
was invited to row and was excited to
be part of the team. “You can build up a
strong bond with runners as you sweat
through the miles together, but when it
comes time to race, you’re going head-tohead
– with the exception of relays. I loved
rowing, you could build up this incredible
bond and then work together as one unit
to race. There’s absolutely nothing like it.”
says Lisa. To better understand the bond,
she suggests reading the book, Boys in the
Boat. Lisa and I agree that runners make
great rowers because both sports are mentally
and physically grueling. She added,
“Runners already know how to push
themselves – a skill it can take many new
athletes years to learn.”
During her tenure at Marist College,
Lisa excelled academically and balanced
two sports. Her rowing ergometer and
running track times had been competitive