Santa Clara Athletics Hall of Fame
A barrier buster and a real Bronco, 'Mimi' arrived at Santa Clara from Bakersfield in the fall of 1972. In her four years with the Broncos, she made a major impact both on and off the water. She joined SCAAP in 1972, where she tutored grammar school kids in Alviso and eventually become co-chair of the organization. Upon graduation, she was a nominee for the St. Claire Medal.
Sherman joined the men's crew as a freshman as the team's coxswain, a multi-purpose position that serves as both an onboard coach and motivator. In her role, she was responsible for implementing the agreed upon strategy and, if necessary, make adjustments on the fly, let the crew know where they were in relation to other boats, what the stroke rate was, the distance to the finish and how to get into the opponents' heads while maintaining a straight course.
She was part of an undefeated freshman boat (Frosh 8) that swept Stanford, San Diego State, Loyola, UCLA and Oregon in the regular season. The Broncos then hosted the Western Sprints at Lexington Reservoir, their home water. Santa Clara sent a Frosh 4 to the IRA Collegiate National Championships in Syracuse, N.Y., including Sherman, who became the first woman to compete in the IRA since its inception in 1895.
In 1974, she accompanied a men's crew to England to compete in the Nottingham Regatta, but was barred from competing due to her sex.
With Sherman calling strokes for the Lightweight 8 in the 1975 and 1976 seasons, the Bronco Crew was a consistent winner, including medal finishes in the Crew Classic and a third-place finish at the Sprints behind powerhouse west coast programs Washington and Cal. The '76 season culminated with Santa Clara earning an invite to row in the 1976 Henley Royal Regatta where Sherman ended the 134-year tradition of "men only" by becoming the first woman to ever compete.
The 1976 Redwood summed up who she was beautifully: "No one will forget Mimi Sherman, the coxswain who made history by becoming the first woman to row at Henley, the world's oldest regatta. She too became someone who could be respected on the crew, and her desire to compete at the highest levels is an example to all rowers who have donned a Bronco Uniform."
