SACRAMENTO, Calif. – St. Francis senior Miranda Reyes has faced obstacles all her life. But she has never let them slow her down.  She found her calling on a boat and after four years as a coxswain for the Upper Natoma Rowing Club, she will be competing for the Portland Pilots crew team next year in college.

Reyes, who is a little person, played sports growing up including both volleyball and golf. But she faced limitations continuing sports in high school. During her freshmen year, some family friends introduced her to crew and she gave it a try.

“I did not know anything about it,” recalled Reyes, who is also a product of Our Lady of Assumption. “I went out and tried it. I ended up loving it and I have been with the same club ever since. It has been a great thing to get into. I played volleyball but going into high school I did not continue sports because of my size. To find something where it is actually an advantage to be smaller, I love coxing.”

Reyes has grown in her knowledge and experience in the sport of rowing via her club.

“We are a smaller club but we take a lot of pride in what we do,” said Reyes. “We do not have as fancy of facilities as everyone else. But we put a lot of hard work into our club. We have moved up in a lot of local area races and competed in Oregon and San Diego. It has been really cool to grow up with the club.”

Reyes has developed the unique skill set to lead a boat as a coxswain, the person in charge of steering and coordinating the power and rhythm of the rowers.

 “She came to us her freshmen year and she was not quite sure about rowing,” said coach Chris Manibusan. “She did not know anything about it. But I thought she would be a great coxswain.”

Manibusan, a local firefighter, trusts her to lead practices when he is on shift.

“She is basically a second coach,” said Manibusan. “The days that I am not at practice, she runs the workouts and make sure everyone is on top of whatever we are doing that day. She is my right-hand person. She takes the full responsibility. The other athletes respect her and listen to what she has to say and what she wants to them to do.”

She developed the admiration and trust of her teammates by her hard work and willingness to jump into every aspect of the training.

“She gained their respect because she was doing everything she could to relate to them and be a better coxswain and leader,” said Manibusan. “She wanted to be the one participating in all aspects. Because she is a little person, there are some things she can’t do but she definitely tries to do them. She does not make excuses. She found out she is capable of doing so much more through her sport and her team.”

Reyes has thrived with the team at Upper Natoma Rowing.

“I love the team aspect and support system with the group of people you see and work with every day,” said Reyes. “It made me fall in love with it and made me stay.”

Reyes’ dedication led to her constant improvement over the last four years and an opportunity to participate in rowing in college. She contacted the Portland coaches this past summer and sent her recordings, an intimidating and unique part of the recruitment of her position.

“It has always been intimidating for me,” said Reyes of listening to her calls. “My teammates are sending times or tapes of them rowing. With a coxswain, it is different. I will take a recorder with me and make a recording. I started making recordings my junior year and I found out there never is really a perfect recording. It was so hard to choose one to send to a college because it was so personal. My teammates (boys and girls), I know what they like to hear and what kinda calls have effect. Having others listen was very intimidating for me.”

After an official visit to the school, she was sold on the team and the school.

“It was crazy,” said Reyes who mostly leads a four-person boat. “I have had the thought of doing crew in college in the back of mind. But I did not know for sure. Finding this team, I am really excited to be continuing with crew in college.”

Manibusan said she will be a great addition to the Portland program.

“She brings a lot of experience and she knows what she wants,” said Manibusan. “She knows the work it takes to get there and she holds her teammates accountable. I think she is going bring a lot to Portland.”

Four years later, Reyes has found her niche in a boat and her impact is big.

“I think this year has opened my eyes to how big a part of my life it is” said Reyes. “I thought of my life without and it does not seem right.”

Reyes will be one of several Troubadour seniors participating in a NLI/College Commitment event at St. Francis on Nov. 12 at 9 a.m.