Two-time Big Ten champion Emma Luniewicz begins her second season “On The Banks” as an assistant coach and international recruiter with Rutgers women’s rowing in 2025-26.
In her first season at Rutgers, Luniewicz was a part of head coach Justin Price’s CRCA Regional Staff of the Year, a region that includes the entire Big Ten Conference, along with independent institutions. As a member of the staff, the Scarlet Knights produced the most successful season in the 50 years of the varsity program. RU placed eighth at the 2025 NCAA Championships, which included the Varsity 4 finishing fifth, the Varsity 8 taking eighth and the 2nd Varsity 8 claiming 13th. Additionally, the Scarlet Knights had their best-ever Big Ten showing as Luniewicz coached the 3rd Varsity 8 to its highest finish in program history with a second-place showing, as well as the 4th Varsity 8 to a third-place finish.
The success of the Scarlet Knights continued well beyond NCAAs with Rutgers winning the Island Challenge Cup in their first-ever appearance at the prestigious Henley Royal Regatta and four Scarlet Knights competing for their home countries at the U23 World Championships. On the world stage, Lily Wood claimed gold for Great Britain’s women’s eight and Victoria Grieder served as coxswain of Canada’s bronze medaling women’s eight.
By the 2025 season’s end, four Scarlet Knights were named CRCA All-Americans and five earned All-Big Ten honors and two landed Big Ten All-Freshman accolades, including Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Beatrice Colclough.
Prior to Rutgers, Luniewicz entered the coaching ranks with an assistant role at Loyola Marymount, where she coached the Varsity 4 to a third-place finish at the WCC Championship.
Luniewicz was a five-year varsity rower from 2017-22 at Michigan, which qualified for four NCAA Championships while winning an NCAA bronze medal in 2019 and two Big Ten titles during her stay in Ann Arbor. She was active outside the boat, serving as vice president on the NCAA Student Athlete Advisory Committee and on the executive board of the Athletes for Community Transformation. Luniewicz was also a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree.
During her time as a student-athlete, Luniewicz got a taste of coaching with Community Rowing Inc., where she taught 70 youth athletes the fundamentals and techniques of rowing and teamwork. She also worked in community outreach and external affairs with the New York Mets and as a corporate partnerships and consulting intern with Premier Partnerships.
Luniewicz received a Bachelor's degree in sport management from Michigan before earning her Master’s of management from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business in 2022.
