X

Novice eight women's Saints rowing crew earns silver at the Head of the Fish Regatta

Posted 11/1/10

The St. Lawrence University Novice 8+ earned silver at the Head of the Fish Regatta on Saturday. The Saints battled 26 other crews to earn the second-place finish. "The novice 8+ rowed through the …

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

Log in

Novice eight women's Saints rowing crew earns silver at the Head of the Fish Regatta

Posted

The St. Lawrence University Novice 8+ earned silver at the Head of the Fish Regatta on Saturday. The Saints battled 26 other crews to earn the second-place finish.

"The novice 8+ rowed through the head-wind and chop with relaxation and poise," said Assistant Coach Jess McAlear. "While other crews flailed at the water, our women kept their oars moving directly to the water and with length on the drive."

The Saints negotiated the 3,300 meter course in 13:35.80, trailing only Williams College who earned first-place and finished with a time of 13:15.20. The crew, which consisted of eight first-year students and a lone sophomore, was stroked by Alie Mihuta '14, while classmate Tori Vossler was the coxswain. Also powering the eight were Anna Lavanger, Alyssa Goley, Kait Murphy, Kye Ameden, Jenette Kloss, Abby McIvor, and sophomore Rachel Kuklinski.

"Four of the women in the Novice 8+ had zero on-the-water rowing experience prior to September," added Assistant Coach McAlear. "The success of the Novice 8+ this weekend speaks to the leadership of those with experience, and the athleticism and focus of those picking up an oar for the first time."

In the women's collegiate JV eights division, the Saints finished fifth out of 15 crews, recording a time of 14:26.76. The eight was less than seven seconds behind Ithaca (14:20.68) and 10 seconds behind UMass (14:16.29). Williams College earned another first-place finish with a time of 13:29.52.

The JV eight was powered by first-years Mihuta (stroke), Lavanger, Kloss, and Goley, along with sophomores Kelly Greenwood (coxswain) and Sally Danker, junior Amanda Brewer, and seniors Maggie Wiener and Alicia Flint.

The Saints also competed in the women's collegiate eight event (9th of 19) and the women's collegiate fours event (14th of 31), recording times of 13:42.31 and 14:39.09, respectively.

"Although only 5 seconds separated 9th from 5th in the collegiate eight, I think our crew should have handled the challenging conditions better than they did," Coach Hughes said. "As they gain more experience, they'll start to understand that, while you can try to dictate how the boat feels, sometimes that the conditions determine that for you. Rowing in a chop, into a headwind, there are going to be times that it feels heavy. The key is anticipating that and making it as fast and light as it can be."

The Head of the Fish concludes the crew team's regattas in the fall season. The Saints will be back in action in the spring.

"The Saints women have had a great fall," said Coach Hughes. "We've made marked technical progress; all crews are now capable of some really nice rowing. Just as importantly, we've posted the kind of results this fall that are cause for substantial optimism about the kind of crew we can be in the spring."