CAMBRIDGE, MA—The conditions were windy and sunny today on the Charles River as Williams traveled to Cambridge to race Wellesley's crew. The boats faced a strong headwind as they lined up in the Charles basin, each crew ready for a competitive fight to the finish. Williams brought 4 eights: the 1
st and 2
nd Varsity eights raced in the same event, as did the 3
rd and 4
th boats. It was a promising day for Williams as the crew executed some exciting wins against Wellesley, the Division III 1 seed according to the Pocock CRCA Poll on April 5.
The 1V and 2V eights lined up first at 9:50. The 1V was coxed by
Julia Lim and stroked by
Maya Tait, followed by
Isabel Mikheev,
Erin Barry,
Emily Hugo,
Ellie Davis,
Ella Napack,
Prairie Resch and
Gabby Fazzalari in bow seat. Wellesley gained 2 seats on Williams off the start, but Williams took a move after their starting sequence fight for even with Wellesley 300 meters in. The boats remained neck and neck through the first 1000 meters, and through the Harvard bridge Williams was half a seat down on Wellesley. Williams steadily picked up their momentum as they crossed into the last 750 meters of the race, and they walked through Wellesley to the line. Williams finished length ahead with a time of 7:18.5, 4 seconds ahead of Wellesley's time of 7:22.3. 6 seat and senior
Erin Barry shared, "We held with them for most of the race. We took our move over the thousand, walked through them, and the race was decided." Stroke seat
Maya Tait reflected, "The conditions were bad and the warm up was not great. We started the race a half a seat behind them, but under the bridge we made a decision to walk through them. We got even, they started to break, and we took seat after seat to finish with a really strong sprint. We ended bow to stern on them. It was a great race--the feeling at the finish was unmatched."
The 2V was coxed by
Sarah Gantt and stroked by
Anna Owens, followed by
Abby Murphy,
Mia Kabillio,
Ellie Iorio,
Marie Brewer,
Riley Galizio,
Ava Rust and
Madeleine Horn in bow seat. Williams was down off the start as Wellesley's 2V jumped off the line, but the boat held their composure and focused on gaining an effective rhythm. The boat remained consistent through the first 1000 meters, focused on pushing back into Wellesley's lead. Williams took an exciting move underneath the Harvard bridge and took back a couple seats on Wellesley. They held this margin through the 500-meter mark and then leaned into their sprint, raising the rate every 10 strokes with power. Williams gained another seat in the sprint and crossed the line with a time of 7:49.1, 4 seconds behind Wellesley's time of 7:53.8. Bow seat
Madeleine Horn shared, "We learned a lot today about our racing plan and process. We had a really solid middle of the race, and it is exciting because we are getting faster every race."
The 3V and 4V eights lined up next at 10:20. The 3V was coxed by
Katie Scott and stroked by
Isabelle Zollinger, followed by
Audrey Riddle,
Emma Caruso,
Claire McDonald,
Molly McWeeny,
Arden Fluehr,
Ella Potee and
Carolyn Fortin in bow seat. Williams was behind on Wellesley off the start, and the boat was nearly a length behind Wellesley at 250 meters in. Williams remained behind until 700 meters in when they took a power 10 to threaten on Wellesley's lead. They kept this strong momentum underneath the bridge, stuck to their rhythm, and were even with Wellesley by 1250 meters in. The boat began to push ahead of Wellesley as they neared the sprint, they leaned into the higher rate and walked through Wellesley. Williams had almost a boat length up on Wellesley across the finish line, ending with a time of 7:54.5, ahead of Wellesley's time of 7:57.7. Coxswain
Katie Scott reflected, "The 3v had another great win. We were challenged with our first quick start due the head wind and found ourselves 1 or 2 seats behind Wellesley for the first 1k. We were able to take seats coming out of the bridge on a big power 10 and push ourselves through a strong sprint to finish first. I'm really proud of how the boat performed and looking forward to next weekend."
The 4V was coxed by
Riku Nakano and stroked by
Alina Ramirez, followed by
Brenda Jaroker, Katie Mckenna, Bri Palmieri,
Annie Refermat,
Amaka Ibekwe,
Greta Gruber and
Grace Clarke in bow seat. The boat struggled with the wind at the starting line, with a less than ideal start in the hectic conditions. Williams regained composure and found a solid rhythm, and the boat kept contact with Wellesley's 4V through the first 500 meters. Williams lost connection to Wellesley's stern in the second 500 but maintained their racing mindset to gain back momentum as they neared the halfway point. The boat took a focus 10 strokes over the 1000-meter mark, improved technically and gained more speed. Williams held this technical focus and grit through the rest of the piece. The boat executed a short but effective sprint for the last 20 strokes, ending with a time of 8:15.1, behind Wellesley's crew.
Eph's head coach Paula Thoms shared, "It was exciting day for the Ephs! The team came to Boston today ready to race. The gains they worked hard for in training showed up on the race course. We're all excited to get back to work on Monday."
The women traveled back to Williamstown excited by their wins and eager to keep improving through next week as they gear back up to race WPI in Worcester next weekend. The team feels proud of their accomplishments so far, but hungry for more wins and progress as the season continues.
