Our Coaches

Coach Cathy Coffman has been rowing for over 40 years and her coaching experience spans 30 years with juniors, as well as masters and college rowers.

Coffman has rowed at Washington-Lee High School, The University of Virginia, Potomac Boat Club, Occoquan Boat Club, and Rivanna Rowing Club. She was the runner up at the 2014 CRASH-B’s in the Senior Veteran Lightweight event. As a rower, she has medalled at Stotesbury, Dad Vails, Club and Master’s Nationals, as well as the Head of the Charles.

Most recently, Coffman has been the head coach of the Albemarle HS Crew. Her crews have won New England, Scholastic Nationals, and Stotesbury. Several of her rowers have gone on to be on the junior national team and/or row in college. 

Roger brings 40 years of rowing and coaching experience to RRC. He rowed collegiately at University of Washington, sculled competitively at Lake Washington RC and Undine BC, winning championships at numerous regional and national regattas. He restarted the Intramural Rowing Program at University of Washington after a 30-year hiatus. He built boats with Pocock Racing Shells and Owen Racing Shells. He has coached at Lake Washington RC, Seattle Pacific, Oregon State, Wisconsin, and Virginia. He has coached at numerous USRowing Jr. and Sr. Selection and development camps, men and women, and has worked with athletes at U-23 World Championships, Pan Am games, and most recently at the Paralympics in London. He is currently the boatman at University of Virginia.

Ryleigh Katstra is entering her fourth year coaching with RRC, and her third year as a head coach. She rowed for the Duke Women’s Rowing team for all four years of undergrad, and is joining the UVA Women's Rowing team this fall. While at Duke, she helped the team to silver at the ACC Championship and was awarded the program’s Hammer Award, given to the team member with the fastest two-kilometer time on the erg machine, in 2021. Prior to Duke, Katstra competed for Albemarle HS Crew and received invitations to the U19 National HP/Selection camp. She earned gold at VASRA State Championships in both the Junior 4x and Senior 2x, gold at the Stotesbury Cup in the 2x, and gold in the 2x and bronze in the 4x at the SRAA National Championships. She placed second in Erg Sprints in both 2019 and 2020. She competed in the Youth 1x and placed top half at HOCR 2019. Katstra most recently has been the adult LTR and Novice head coach and has helped with the junior LTR and high school summer programs.

Rebecca has been rowing for 7 years, since the freshman year of high school with the AHS juniors, where she competed in the quad.  She won 3 gold medals at the VASRA State Championships, and reached finals at Stotesbury. She won 2 bronze medals at the SRAA national championships. She went on to cox for the UVA men's team as well as cox for RRC. Additionally, she has volunteered with Darden School LTR events. She is joining RRC as a new LTR coach, with the experience in assisting in LTR programs.

Reece Anderson began rowing at Great Bridge High School in Chesapeake, Virginia in 2016. She is a 3x VASRA Championship medalist and 2x Stotesbury finalist. After graduating in 2021, she joined the UVA men’s team as a coxswain where she won gold at the 2022 ACRA Championship in the Men’s Novice 8+. In the fall of 2022, she transitioned back to rowing, winning the ACRA Championship again in the Women’s Varsity 1x. Reece is now an assistant coach for AHS and continues to train with UVA’s team while studying biology and data science. 

Alex Ballinger is going into his fourth year on the UVA Men's Rowing team. He won a gold medal at the SIRA and ACRA championships his novice year, and a gold medal at ACRA his second year as well. Last year, Alex also competed at Henley Royal Regatta in the Prince Albert Challenge Cup. This year, he won a gold medal in the V8+ at SIRA championships, and will be racing at ACRA in the V8+. During his second year, Alex traveled abroad to row in Melbourne, Australia with Mercantile Rowing Club. He has also raced at HOCR 2023 and helped volunteer with UVA Darden's LTR program.

Coach Ashley started rowing in high school with Beaver Creek Sculling and later with the RRC juniors and Albemarle High school until she graduated in 2014. She continued competing as a women’s single and double sculler for the University of Virginia, where she won three ACRA National Championships, two Dad Vail bronze medals, and three SIRA Regional Championships among others. She was named ACRA All-American in 2017 and finished her collegiate career as one of the most medaled athletes in Virginia Rowing Association history. After graduating from UVA, Ashley worked as a full-time volunteer assistant for the UVA Men’s Rowing program in the 2018-2019 school year. She was in charge of developing athletes’ technical proficiency through small boats training. By the 2019 ACRA Championships, many of her athletes had progressed into top boats, and both of her sculling crews made the Grand Final. She joined Albemarle High School Rowing’s staff in the spring of 2019, where she helped coach medal-winning athletes in the VASRA State Championship, Stotesbury Cup, and Scholastic Nationals. 

Coach Walker is currently an Assistant Coach with the UVA Mens Rowing Team. He has been rowing since 2010, at Bainbridge Island Rowing Association, Lewis and Clark College, and Western Washington University. His coaching experience includes Western Washington University Mens Assistant Coach, Whatcom Rowing Association, and Bainbridge Island Rowing Association.

Certifications: USRowing Level 2 Certified Coach, Safe-Sport Certified, American Red Cross Lifeguard and CPR/First Aid certified, Virginia Boating License