She’s Back – With Rowing Mindset for Life, Frost Returns for Another Senior Season
Jul 01, 2020 | Rowing, Sports Extra
By: Austin Siegel
Sitting in their boat at the last practice of K-State's spring camp in Sacramento, Logan Frost and Abigail Dressler had a weird feeling.
At that point, most of the country had heard of the coronavirus. But the kind of impact it could have on college sports was still coming into focus.
Frost and Dressler were seniors, paired together since their freshmen year for the Wildcats.
At that practice in Northern California, Dressler told Frost she thought they needed to go for it.
"That's how it's always been with Abigail. It's another reason why I love her so much," Frost said. "Coach gave us a 30-stroke finish. She was like, 'I want you to go for this with me.' And I was like OK, so we went for it and we were done, and I told her that I was so looking forward to doing that at Big 12s and watching Texas fly behind us."
Of course, spring camp and the Wildcats duel with Sacramento State would be their final meet of the season due to COVID-19.
But for Frost, the story isn't quite over.
"I kind of got robbed of the chance to have that senior season with my team and the girls that I call my family," she said. "When we heard rumors that we might have the chance to come back, I told my coach, 'If you'll have me, I'm coming back.' I wanted that one more time."
Frost will return to Manhattan in 2020-21 for another shot at her senior season and a rowing career that, while not something she planned before K-State, she couldn't leave unfinished.
The last time Frost had to make a decision about her rowing career came as a freshman at Kansas State, when she decided to give the sport a try with one of her friends on the team.
"I wasn't really all that athletic in high school, but there are so many benefits to being on the team," she said. "You get this whole family that you had no idea you could ever have out of college and winning feels so good. Once you have a taste of that, you want more and more."
Racing in the Novice 8 as a freshman, Frost racked up gold medals at the Head of the Oklahoma and Jayhawk Jamboree, earning a spot in the 1v8 and 1v4 throughout her K-State career.
A fourth-place finish in the 1v8 at the 2018 Big 12 Championships capped off her sophomore year, setting the stage for a return to the conference meet and another shot at the podium.
Competitive throughout the race, Frost and her boat made it past the line in a too-close-to-call finish. She thought the Wildcats finished in fourth again, until she saw assistant coach Hanna Wiltfong jumping up and down on the dock as K-State grabbed third and a spot on the podium.
"How many people get to hold a Big 12 medal? No one gets that and I wanted to have that feeling again," Frost said.
Coming into the 2019-20 season, Frost had the same teammates back from her bronze medal boat and plans to help the Wildcats get to another level. Putting those plans on hold has forced her to adjust, but Frost has the experience to shape how she rows with different teammates.
"We have so many strong, younger girls with so much potential that hasn't even been tapped into yet and I'm excited to be a part of that," Frost said. "Obviously, our sport is extremely physical and even Saturday isn't a day that you have off. But at the same time, it's completely and utterly a mental thing and you can apply it anywhere, to any part of your life."
The part of her life outside rowing will play an important role as Frost returns to Manhattan.
After focusing on a medical career when she arrived at Kansas State, Frost considered a very different path when she secured a summer internship at the Topeka Zoo.
"It was amazing, and I got to work with all different kinds of animals, she said. "But when you're working with elephants, they poop 250 pounds every day. You have to clean all of that up, often by yourself. So, by the end of the day, my old rower's body, I'm achy, sore, tired and hot. I want something that I can enjoy until I'm 65. I don't think that was going to be zookeeping."
That led Frost to rediscover nursing, where she will apply for school in the fall while pursuing two minors at K-State, including another one of her passions in anthropology.
One person who won't be a part of the rowing season is Dressler, who wrapped up her K-State career with one last victory in Sacramento, as she and Frost rowed past Sac State in the 1v4+.
"When we get on the plane and heard the news, I looked at her and saw this welling of tears," Frost said. "We both had that realization that this is it."
Following that four-year "monumental" partnership with Dressler, Frost said she's excited to row with K-State teammates who she hasn't been able to share a boat with during her career.
And whether she's chasing the Longhorns or her future plans as a health-care worker, Frost knows her rowing mindset isn't going anywhere.
"People who graduated always say this is hard, but it's not rowing hard," Frost said. "Those horrible workouts where it's eight sets and you don't know how you're going to do that - in life you don't have sets of things. You just have one, get it done. Suddenly, this is so much easier."
Sitting in their boat at the last practice of K-State's spring camp in Sacramento, Logan Frost and Abigail Dressler had a weird feeling.
At that point, most of the country had heard of the coronavirus. But the kind of impact it could have on college sports was still coming into focus.
Frost and Dressler were seniors, paired together since their freshmen year for the Wildcats.
At that practice in Northern California, Dressler told Frost she thought they needed to go for it.
"That's how it's always been with Abigail. It's another reason why I love her so much," Frost said. "Coach gave us a 30-stroke finish. She was like, 'I want you to go for this with me.' And I was like OK, so we went for it and we were done, and I told her that I was so looking forward to doing that at Big 12s and watching Texas fly behind us."
Of course, spring camp and the Wildcats duel with Sacramento State would be their final meet of the season due to COVID-19.
But for Frost, the story isn't quite over.
"I kind of got robbed of the chance to have that senior season with my team and the girls that I call my family," she said. "When we heard rumors that we might have the chance to come back, I told my coach, 'If you'll have me, I'm coming back.' I wanted that one more time."
Frost will return to Manhattan in 2020-21 for another shot at her senior season and a rowing career that, while not something she planned before K-State, she couldn't leave unfinished.
The last time Frost had to make a decision about her rowing career came as a freshman at Kansas State, when she decided to give the sport a try with one of her friends on the team.
"I wasn't really all that athletic in high school, but there are so many benefits to being on the team," she said. "You get this whole family that you had no idea you could ever have out of college and winning feels so good. Once you have a taste of that, you want more and more."
Racing in the Novice 8 as a freshman, Frost racked up gold medals at the Head of the Oklahoma and Jayhawk Jamboree, earning a spot in the 1v8 and 1v4 throughout her K-State career.
A fourth-place finish in the 1v8 at the 2018 Big 12 Championships capped off her sophomore year, setting the stage for a return to the conference meet and another shot at the podium.
Competitive throughout the race, Frost and her boat made it past the line in a too-close-to-call finish. She thought the Wildcats finished in fourth again, until she saw assistant coach Hanna Wiltfong jumping up and down on the dock as K-State grabbed third and a spot on the podium.
"How many people get to hold a Big 12 medal? No one gets that and I wanted to have that feeling again," Frost said.
Coming into the 2019-20 season, Frost had the same teammates back from her bronze medal boat and plans to help the Wildcats get to another level. Putting those plans on hold has forced her to adjust, but Frost has the experience to shape how she rows with different teammates.
"We have so many strong, younger girls with so much potential that hasn't even been tapped into yet and I'm excited to be a part of that," Frost said. "Obviously, our sport is extremely physical and even Saturday isn't a day that you have off. But at the same time, it's completely and utterly a mental thing and you can apply it anywhere, to any part of your life."
The part of her life outside rowing will play an important role as Frost returns to Manhattan.
After focusing on a medical career when she arrived at Kansas State, Frost considered a very different path when she secured a summer internship at the Topeka Zoo.
"It was amazing, and I got to work with all different kinds of animals, she said. "But when you're working with elephants, they poop 250 pounds every day. You have to clean all of that up, often by yourself. So, by the end of the day, my old rower's body, I'm achy, sore, tired and hot. I want something that I can enjoy until I'm 65. I don't think that was going to be zookeeping."
That led Frost to rediscover nursing, where she will apply for school in the fall while pursuing two minors at K-State, including another one of her passions in anthropology.
One person who won't be a part of the rowing season is Dressler, who wrapped up her K-State career with one last victory in Sacramento, as she and Frost rowed past Sac State in the 1v4+.
"When we get on the plane and heard the news, I looked at her and saw this welling of tears," Frost said. "We both had that realization that this is it."
Following that four-year "monumental" partnership with Dressler, Frost said she's excited to row with K-State teammates who she hasn't been able to share a boat with during her career.
And whether she's chasing the Longhorns or her future plans as a health-care worker, Frost knows her rowing mindset isn't going anywhere.
"People who graduated always say this is hard, but it's not rowing hard," Frost said. "Those horrible workouts where it's eight sets and you don't know how you're going to do that - in life you don't have sets of things. You just have one, get it done. Suddenly, this is so much easier."
Players Mentioned
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