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81 B eth Baustian isn't the only athlete to complete morning and aernoon practices nearly every day of high school. Still, her story is unique. Baustian is from Davenport, Iowa, and graduated from North Scott High School. Her sport of choice wasn't volleyball, basketball, or soball. It was rowing. "I have terrible hand-eye coordination with any sport with a ball," Baustian said with a laugh. So twice a day since the age of 15, Baustian drove 15 minutes to a boathouse in Moline, Illinois, on the Mississippi River. She also competed in cross country as a high school sophomore and did offseason workouts with the team before her junior and senior seasons, but her passion was rowing. "It sounds funny to say you rowed on the Mississippi, but it worked out well," Baustian said. Baustian was a member of Y-Quad Cities Rowing. Don't be fooled by location, despite being in the Midwest, the club boasts one of the most competitive junior rowing programs in the nation. Baustian was home-schooled until eighth grade. She attended Morning Star Academy in Bettendorf, Iowa, for two years before finishing 10th-12th grades at North Scott in Eldridge, Iowa. One of her main influences was her brother, Drew, who rowed at Cornell University and is now an assistant coach at Penn. Prior to coming to Iowa, Baustian placed first in the women's double at the Youth National Championships in 2011. She was fih in women's single scull in 2010. At the 2012 Club National Championships, Baustian placed second in women's scull and 4x1. She was first in women's double at the Head of the Charles in 2010. Baustian was recruited to the University of Iowa by then novice coach Scott Ramsey. Before she got to campus, Ramsey was named head women's rowing coach at Columbia. Instead of beginning on the Hawkeye novice team, Baustian was immediately elevated to varsity, rowing for the 1V8 at the Head of the Iowa and 2V8 at the San Diego Crew Classic and Big Ten Championships. An exercise science major, Baustian also has an interest in dietetics, so she transferred to Iowa State as a sophomore to check out its accredited dietetics program. On July 13, 2013, Andrew Carter was named head coach at Iowa. Baustian was interested in re- emerging as a Hawkeye and the new head coach already knew her name. Carter received many congratulatory calls from across the country when he accepted the job at Iowa. One coach included a message: "You need to be sure she comes back," Carter remembers the coach saying. "She is special." Baustian returned to Iowa City, and aside from being named Academic All-Big Ten, she has assumed a leadership role. "e rowing program here has done a 180 (degree turn) in the last couple years," Baustian said. "It is a different atmosphere, environment, people than it was when I was a freshman." Carter calls Baustian a steady, yet unpredictable, force which makes her an exciting student-athlete to be around. "She's not the biggest woman on the team, she isn't the strongest woman on the team, but she is incredibly dependable when it comes to performance," Carter said. "She brings her best effort day in and day out. We can always depend on her on race day to lead by example and bring her best performance." e Hawkeyes competed in three fall events: Head of the Des Moines (Sept. 27), a scrimmage at Indiana (Oct. 4), and at the Kansas Jayhawk Jamboree (Oct. 18). ey resume with the