Sturgis' Jane Toner to be member of MSU crew

STURGIS — Jane Toner is not a big fan of free time, it would seem.

The recent graduate of Sturgis High School loaded up her senior year with a multitude of tough classes. Included in that were Advance Placement (AP) courses in calculus, chemistry plus forensics, English plus human performance as well. It's helped her prepare for the next level, where Toner will spend her time (free or not) on the campus of Michigan State University.

She will also be a member of the rowing team for the Spartans. Rowing is a sport new to Toner, who competed as a swimmer, soccer player and track/field athlete during her time at Sturgis.

"I met the team and really enjoyed everybody and I love the way they celebrate each other," Toner said of her time at MSU so far. "Everyone is working to get better and they are all in it for each other. It seemed they wanted to be there and get along, which was nice."

Toner joins 18 fellow incoming newcomers to the MSU rowing squad. This will be the second season for Spartan head coach Stacey Rippetoe.

"We're looking forward to welcoming this class of new Spartans onto the Grand River and into our team," Rippetoe said in a release by MSU about the incoming class. "It's exciting to think about all that they have ahead of them, both in terms of rowing and academic achievements and growing into powerful teammates of so many strong women."

The Spartans have a novice rowing program which helps teach and place their student athletes involved with the team. Toner said they recruit from plenty of other sports in the high school ranks for the rowing program, like long distance runners, throwers in track/field and athletes with plenty of upper body strength. Toner, a distance runner and a decently tall athlete, said she meets the criteria for what they are looking for, apparently.

The rowing program is one of a few water sports for the Spartans at the varsity level for the women. They do not have a varsity men's crew team.

During her first year on campus and with the team, Toner will spend the majority of her time outside of the boat. As a member of the crew, she will learn a spot in said boat and all of the terminology used in the sport. It will be a welcomed time for Toner, who is all-in on preparing for competition, but not necessarily actually competing (her words).

"I just get nervous with competition, but I love preparing for competition and then not competing," she said with a smile.

One thing Toner absolutely knows will not make her nervous is the classroom. Her studies have always been a major portion of her life and she has the confidence in herself to handle that schoolwork. Time management skills are also pretty solid, given her extremely loaded schedule her senior year.

"I always have something to do — swimming, track, working on homework, going to my job, I'm always busy," she said. "I think I will actually have no idea what to do if I have free time."

Toner said she has aspirations of becoming an orthodontist. It takes quite a bit of schooling — like, a lot of schooling. A typical orthodontist completes their undergraduate degree (four years) before heading off to dental school, which is typically four years as well. On top of that, residency programs can be two to three years as well.

A decade of schooling could be in the future for Toner, but that seems to be just fine for her.

"I told you I didn't like free time," she said with a smile. "I'm prepared for it. It's something I want to do and the rowing aspect of it intrigues me, so I'm looking forward to that as well."

Contact Sports Editor Brandon Watson at bwatson@gannett.com . Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @BwatsonSJ.

This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: Sturgis' Jane Toner to be member of MSU crew