The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Rowing lands five CRCA All-America selections
06.06.2025 | Rowing
Amy Werner, Abby Dawson, Sue Holderness, Marg Van der Wal and Lucy Searle were selected to the CRCA’s All-America teams.
AUSTIN, Texas – Texas Rowing's Amy Werner, Abby Dawson, Sue Holderness, Marg Van der Wal and Lucy Searle were placed on the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association's (CRCA) All-America teams, the organization announced Friday afternoon. Werner, Dawson, Holderness and Van der Wal earned First-Team All-America recognition, while Searle landed on the All-America Second Team. This marks the second-consecutive year that five Longhorns have been tabbed All-Americans.
All five were part of the Texas First Varsity Eight crew, powering the Longhorns to a third-place finish at the 2025 NCAA National Championships. Under their leadership, Texas collected its eighth-consecutive top-four finish at the national regatta.
The I Eight recorded a podium finish on June 1, placing third in 6:09.848. With their efforts, the UT First Eight has posted a podium finish in six of the last seven NCAA Championships. In the final race of the national meet, the I Eight battled hard to seal Texas' third-place team finish. Yale won in 6:06.138 followed by Stanford (2nd-6:08.336), Texas (3rd-6:09.848), Tennessee (4th-6:10.912), Washington (5th-6:12.538) and Brown (6th-6:14.088). The Longhorns concluded the weekend with 118 total points – the fifth-most in program history at a national championship. All five helped Texas capture the first-ever SEC Rowing Championship after throwing down a clutch, come-from-behind performance to win the I Eight and clinch the conference title. Texas extended its conference championship winning streak to 10-straight while winning the program's 14 overall conference crown.
Van der Wal, who rowed at the six-seat, is now a two-time CRCA First-Team All-American after receiving First-Team selection in 2024. The Groningen, Netherlands, native adds All-America distinguishment to her long list of 2025 accolades, including SEC Rower of the Year, SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year, First-Team All-SEC recognition and SEC Rower of the Week (April 16). Prior to the season, Van der Wal was named to the CRCA's Athletes to Watch list. Van der Wal is the 11th Longhorn in program history to be selected to the All-America First Team multiple times.
This marks the first career All-America nods for Werner, Dawson, Holderness and Searle.
Werner, a junior coxswain, was instrumental in Texas' successful 2025 campaign in her first season with the I Eight, earning First-Team All-SEC as well.
Dawson, a First-Team All-SEC honoree, was previously selected on the CRCA's Athletes to Watch list before the season. In her second season with the First Eight, the London native rowed at the bow seat after racing at the three-seat in 2024.
Holderness, a First-Team All-SEC and SEC Community Service Team honoree, rowed at the eight-seat in 2025. The senior from Charlotte, N.C., was named SEC Rower of the Week on April 3 for her performance at the San Diego Crew Classic.
Searle, a sophomore from Orange, Australia, rowed at the two-seat for the Longhorns in addition to receiving First-Team All-SEC praise. It was her first season as a part of the I Eight crew after racing with the I Four as a freshman in 2024.
Each year, the coaches of the CRCA recognize the outstanding student-athletes in each NCAA Division (I, II and III). Student-athletes must have rowed in at least 75-percent of the team's races in the varsity boat. All-America athletes are selected from those athletes previously named first-team all-region. Criteria for selection include: boat performance, nomination rank, coach's comments, individual achievements and individual two-kilometer ergometer score.
