(Photo Courtesy of California Athletics)
With the sound of a megaphone from Cal Head Coach, Al Acosta, the Golden Bears for years have set forth on their yearly campaign in Oakland, California, to improve their standings from the year prior.
It is safe to say that the rowing world knows that the athletes who carry the weight both figuratively and verbatim within the rowing shell tend to get overlooked by most observers solely due to their ratio of 8:1 or 4:1 depending on which boat class is in the topic of discussion.
When you look at the BIG THREE — Baseball, Basketball, and Football, the following terms remain an icebreaker hooking the conversationalists to immediate dialogue and an array of highly-passionate perspectives and utter takes on if teams across the nation are putting out their very best and elite gamechangers to seal the deal come gameday.
FSN’s recent installment, coined as “First String” is set in stone for what we as a Staff believe is one of the most critical positions in College Rowing combining an array of leadership impacts and value far beyond the waterway. We give this series to the “9th Seats” of the sport that drastically make or break the results on race day, to not only set the tone of the crew’s mentality and work-ethic stemmed in practice, but the forward-thinking, strategic, and highly-disciplined individual behind piecing the puzzle together for max-efficiency backed by a proficiency for accuracy, utmost teamwork, and support — the Coxswain.
In August of 2025, the FSN Staff circled the roundtable to spark the conversation amongst the College Rowing landscape and the tiers of elite drivers who in all reality earned a spotlight and their fair share of publicity backed by College Rowing’s leading analysts, For Stars Network’s Founder/CEO, Hudson Forster. Sharing his Top-10 Coxswains in both Men’s and Women’s Rowing, respectively, the crew received his highly-researched and data-driven list of Drivers who have big shoes to fill in 2026, and a team that will be corralled by their innate leadership stills and overall influence.
With the next athlete “on deck” being a valuable selection for FSN’s “First String” Coxswain Series, we bring you Darien, Connecticut’s very own, University of California-Berkeley Senior, Julia Fullington, who got her start coxing for Greenwich Crew under Varsity Women’s Head Coaches, Heidi Hunsberger and Catherine Starr.
(Photo Courtesy of Thomas Hauge/Crew Pix)
Ranked as the No. 6 Coxswain in Women’s Rowing during the Pre-Season by FSN, Fullington, the sister to Claire Fullington, a coxswain standout currently in her Freshman Year at UCLA under Bruins Head Coach, Vanessa Tavelero, who was once Julia’s coach during her prior three years at Cal before she made the trek South to the City of Angels.
Fullington was listed as one of five coxswains hailing from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), being the third-ranked out of seven at her position in the Class of 2026 as Senior nominees within the first-ever installment of Top-10 Coxswain Rankings at the collegiate level in history.
We had an opportunity to sit down with the marvel from Cal Women’s Crew, a two-time consecutive NCAA Rowing Championships Coxswain, answering to inspire the next generation of elite playmakers in the United States and beyond. Ready to launch, and rallying the sleuth of Golden Bears, let’s get dialed with Julia Fullington:
FSN: What is one token of advice for Coxswains embarking on their Freshmen Year in College?
Julia Fullington: As a Freshman, it's crucial to be a student of the sport. When you enter the world of collegiate rowing, you gain exposure to invaluable new opportunities: whether it's listening to world-class coaches on the launch or getting feedback from more experienced rowers and coxswains. I encourage anyone starting their college career to ask as many questions as possible (and to write down the answers to them so you don't forget).
(Photo Courtesy of California Athletics)
FSN: How do you work on your craft outside of the Coxswain Seat rather than just listening to Coxswain Recordings?
Julia Fullington: Outside of listening to recordings, I think riding the launch is the best way to improve your skill set. Taking a notebook and writing down everything your coaches say (from observations about rowers to technical phrases) can translate very well into your performance on the water.
FSN: What are your top three songs to listen to before Practice and then for Race Day? Are they the same or do they vary?
Julia Fullington: Before practice, I'm currently listening to American Girl by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Tore Up by Don Toliver, and Groovejet by Spiller.
Before races, Right Now by Van Halen and Swan Lake Suite, Op. 20: Scene by Tchaikovsky twice.
(Photo Courtesy of California Athletics)
FSN: Throughout your career, have you noticed certain elements that high school or college coxswains lack in terms of skill level or situational awareness on land or water? What exactly are those elements?
Julia Fullington: I think the skill I had to work on the most as a younger coxswain was separating my athlete identity from my personal identity. It's easy, when you're a nervous 16/17-year-old, to take a piece of feedback from a coach or rower very personally. Once young coxswains can draw a line between who they are as an athlete and who they are as a person, they can take feedback more productively and start to make strides in all aspects of their skill set.
(Photo Courtesy of California Athletics)
FSN: What is one call or move that you made in a Race that you’ll never forget?
Julia Fullington: In my sophomore year, I was racing the 4V8+ at the Cal/Washington Dual at home. We were the first scheduled race of the day, and I will never forget the move we took coming under the bridge at Redwood Shores. We were up on the Huskies, and the energy (both inside the boat and from the "stands") was palpable.
FSN: How important to you is 1:1 Coxswain Coaching during high school and what was the best tip you received from a Coach, Mentor or even Teammate?
Julia Fullington: I was blessed with some of the best high school coaches around (Heidi Hunsberger and Catherine Starr) during my time at Greenwich Crew. Both the 1:1 coaching and the general coaching I received from them was incredibly important to my development. Not only did they inspire confidence in me as an athlete, but also as a person. I am forever grateful to them!
FSN: Where does Motivation rank out of the most important characteristics about being an Elite Coxswain for you on a scale of 1-10, ten being the least important?
Julia Fullington: On a list of the most important characteristics of college coxswains, I’d probably give motivation a six or seven. When coxing elite rowers, executing a clear race plan and having strong boat feel matter more than motivation, since most athletes are already highly intrinsically motivated. That being said, motivation is definitely the most fun part of the job.
(Photo Courtesy of California Athletics)
FSN: How often are you coaching your rowers while on land? Did anyone teach you when to back off giving Critiques or Extrinsic Motivation and when to step in while the athletes are on the ergs or did it just come naturally?
Julia Fullington: Generally speaking, I don't give technical coxing to rowers on land unless they explicitly ask me to. That being said, the Cal Coxswain Squad is known for getting pretty rowdy during test pieces.
(Photo Courtesy of California Athletics)
FSN: What are three words that you believe best illustrate your character as a leader within your program?
Julia Fullington: Collaborative, Dedicated, and Team-Oriented.
FSN: What do you want to be remembered for during your time in the saddle as a Golden Bear?
Julia Fullington: Being a Golden Bear has been such an honor, and I hope I'm remembered for being a supportive and dedicated teammate along with the rest of my amazing senior class.