“She’s very nurturing, but also very driven,” Lambert adds. “And she’s one of the funniest people you’ll ever meet.”

Though rowing occupies a significant portion of every day and has come to rest at the forefront of her list of priorities, Lambert has certainly not abandoned her original plans.

She still pursues her love of writing. Lambert is currently drafting her English senior thesis, affectionately describing Pascale as a French philosopher “all shook up by the Copernican revolution.”

Moreover, she is in the process of earning  a teaching certificate from UTEP (Harvard’s Undergraduate Teacher Education Program), citing high school English as a possible field which would both interest her and allow her to continue writing.

“I’m kind of maternal,” Lambert says reflectively. “I like kids, and I could see myself being a teacher.”

Lambert is already on her way to teaching, spending much of her precious spare time with children. As both a Harvard Freshman Outdoors Program leader and a summer counselor at Clearwater Camp in her native Wisconsin, she is gaining the necessary experience.

In the meantime, she has a national championship to defend.

Not bad for a girl who never considered herself to be an athlete.