Our amazing coaches are the heart of our family here at Belmont Rowing Center! They are passionate about rowing and committed to carrying out our mission to promote the growing sport of rowing through educational, competitive, and inclusive programs. We are lucky to have coaches with a wide variety of experience and expertise who are ready to help you reach your goals!
Emma Halfacre
Youth Coach
she/her
Emma started rowing in the summer of fifth grade with the Asheville Youth Rowing Association. She led a very successful youth career and was recruited to row at Duquesne University. At Duquesne, she earned a spot in the 1V8 as a freshman; however, she decided pursue academics and transfer to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte for Mechanical Engineering. She coached at Asheville Youth for a year before moving to Charlotte to continue working on her degree. She loves the sport and wanted to continue coaching at BRC.
PJ O’Brien
Youth Coach
he/him
PJ is a full time student at UNC Charlotte, studying to become a biomedical engineer. He was on Charlotte Youth’s club team all four years of high school, for one of which he was a coxswain. He rowed almost entirely sweep rowing boats, his favorite of which was a lightweight four called the Chupacabra. He works both as an assistant rowing coach for BRC and as a research assistant on campus for an optical surgical device.
Kristin Sherman
Masters Green Coach
she/her
Kristin rowed for three years at UVA as part of their first women’s crew, rowing in a 4+ and then a lightweight 8+ at races on the East Coast, including the Head of the Charles. In 2011, after decades away from the sport, she returned to rowing with us. As a masters rower, she has competed mostly in sweep events, but has also taken up sculling and occasionally racing in her own single. Kristin has been an educator for most of her professional life, so enjoys coaching very much.
Patricia Stichnoth
Learn to Row Coach
she/her
Patricia fell in love with the sport of rowing in 2016 when she started volunteering for the Head of the Charles regatta while living in Boston. After spending years exclusively in single sculls, she learned to row with others in 2021 and now calls the quad her favorite boat! Patricia is a product manager in tech by day, and enjoys running, hiking, and baking in her free time.