‘Devastated’

The Ivy League was first to cancel its men’s basketball tournament.

Then the Patriot League followed suit.

Anxiety began building up and spreading through the Indiana University women’s rowing team, much like COVID-19 (coronavirus) has been making its way through the world.

The Hoosier women constantly checked social media, refreshing Twitter and other news sites as more and more dominoes began to fall.

Thursday afternoon, Indiana University spread the word: the Big Ten Conference and NCAA was going to cancel spring sports.

Just like that, Megan Wellman’s athletic career came to a screeching halt.

“I mean, obviously I’m devastated,” said Wellman, a 2016 Jay County High School graduate and senior on the IU women’s rowing team. “Our first meet was supposed to be this weekend (the Louisville Cardinal Invite in Oak Ridge, Tennessee). We were supposed to be leaving (Friday) morning.

“It’s hard. It’s not only the fact I’m never going to compete as an athlete again; you don’t get to see this team anymore, you don’t travel, you don’t get to perform on the biggest stage for something you’ve worked hard for.

“I’m trying to take it one day at a time and figure out what’s next.”

Wellman said she initially felt the decision was unfair and rash.

“Why was it taken not two weeks at a time?” she asked rhetorically. “Why did it all get canceled?

“(I was) confused, hurt, questioning did they even really consider what they were doing to seniors and people who wanted this.

“As time went on, I just kind of went from being sad … I had to write down everything that was positive.”

Wellman spent a chunk of her high school career fighting through a grade 3 hamstring tear she suffered during her sophomore year. In spite of the affliction, she was still a standout on the cross country and track teams for the Patriots.

As a junior, she was the sectional champion in the 1600-meter run. A few days earlier, she helped the Patriots’ 4x800 relay team to an Allen County Athletic Conference championship.

She set the school record for a 5K race as a senior by running a time of 19 minutes, 0.2 seconds, during the regional cross country meet. A week earlier, she had became the program’s first individual sectional champion since 2012.

Wellman is also part of the quartet to hold the indoor record in the 4x800 relay in 10:24.21.

With a competitive drive — and learning endurance athletes such as distance runners and swimmers make good rowers — her path to the Hoosier rowing team was set in place.

Wellman made her collegiate debut April 1, 2017, as the Hoosiers hosted Michigan State, Louisville and Kansas at Lake Lemon.

“So many jitters,” she said reminiscing on that moment. “It was exciting. It brought me back to the first 5K I ever ran or first track race I ever ran.

“I thought, ‘This is awesome.’ It wasn’t great, but I knew from there this is the perfect starting point and this is everything I want to do.”

Much like running, Wellman learned from her rowing career the value of hard work while also balancing her academics.

She still hopes to graduate in May with a degree in sales and marketing — IU will be on spring break next week and then have online classes through April 6. The Bryant native is in the midst of planning a fall 2021 wedding and also in the process of applying to law school.

“If you work hard, you can do anything,” she said. “It truly is like that.

“In rowing, I definitely found strength I didn’t know I had. It came from learning quick at the biggest stage; not only working hard in workouts but working hard in taking care of myself with nutrition and recovery.

“If you work hard you really can do anything. It’s not easy. Sometimes you don’t want to but you can truly do anything if you put your mind to it.”

Much like seniors in all spring collegiate sports across the country, Wellman won’t get the opportunity to compete for a fourth year. She will not get the feeling of knowing the 2020 Dale England Cup would be her final home race.

Her parents, Ed and Linda, have supported her athletic career throughout, so breaking the news to them was not easy. But Linda pushed Megan to focus on the positives of being able to participate in an NCAA Division I sport, especially rowing, and also to think of those she was able to meet along the way.

Now that she’s had a little bit of time to reflect on more than the abrupt ending, Wellman can look back and smile at her time as a Hoosier.

“Overall I’m hopeful,” she said, “and I’m ready for what comes next and just thankful for the process along the way.”