Stesha Carlé enters her fourth year directing the USD women’s rowing program in 2022-23 after being elevated to head coach in September of 2019.
Carle's third season leading the Toreros saw her team again set forth a strong performance, notching victories in four different events before placing third at the WCC Championships and earning a pair of All-WCC accolades.
San Diego began the season in the fall by earning three medals at the San Diego Fall Classic, then followed that up in the spring with another medal at the San Diego Crew Classic. The team took three races from crosstown rival UC San Diego in April, then captured five more at the WIRA Championships in Sacramento.
Twenty-one of Carle's athletes were named to the All-WCC Academic Team in 2021-2022 including three to the First Team — the most of any San Diego program.
In her second year at the helm of USD women’s rowing, Carle’s squad put up an impressive performance, capturing wins in five of the events they competed in before they took home five all-conference accolades.
In their first event against Gonzaga and LMU at the Elite Athlete Training Center in Chula Vista, the Toreros won four of their five races, then captured three championships at the San Diego Crew Classic, won five of their six races and swept Saint Mary's at Redwood Shores, secured a win over UCLA, and earned a 2V8+ West Coast Conference championship in their season finale.
Under Carle's guidance, redshirt senior Kadee Sylla was named the 2021 WCC Women's Rower of the Year and redshirt sophomore Mady Kertin was named the 2021 WCC Women's Rowing Co-Coxswain of the Year, while Sylla, redshirt senior Sam Ahlman, and redshirt junior Isla Blake were selected to the 2021 Women's Rowing All-WCC First Team. Additionally, 10 of Carle's rowers were named 2021 CRCA National Scholar-Athletes.
Prior to taking the helm, Carlé spent two seasons as an assistant coach for the Toreros, joining Sarah Trowbridge’s staff in 2017. During that time, the USD crew took home third place and second place finishes at the 2018 and 2019 WCC Championships respectively, with a total of five All-WCC first team honorees.
After a decorated four-year collegiate rowing career at Michigan, Carlé competed with the U.S. National Team and won six medals, including three silvers at the world championships: one in the W4- in 2008 and two in the W4x in 2009 and 2011. Her silver medals in 2009 and 2011 were at the time the highest the United States had ever finished in the event. She went on to capture gold medals in the W1x, W2x and W4x in the 2014 National Championships.
Using her seven-year national team experience, she was also a runner-up at the Olympic Trials in 2016 in the W1x.
While rowing with the nationally-ranked Michigan program, Carlé helped the Varsity 8 to a second place finish at the NCAA Championships in 2003 as well as third place finishes in 2004. As a team, Michigan finished in the top-four in 2003 and 2004, lifted by Carlé and the Varsity 8's performances. In addition to her time as a Wolverine, Carlé rowed for the national U-23 team in 2005 (gold medal in the W4-) and 2006 in the W2-.
A native of Long Beach, Carlé has also rowed and worked with the Long Beach Rowing Association and the Southern California Sculling Club in Huntington Beach, Calif.
Carlé holds a degree in Movement Science ('06), specializing in exercise physiology, biomechanics and motor control, from Michigan.
