Bethel, OH —
Williams women's crew competed in their 19
th NCAA Championship and took home the third-place team trophy behind second-place Wesleyan and first-place Tufts.
The Williams 2V lined up at the start line with Smith and Wesleyan to their left and Tufts, Trinity, and Ithaca to their right.
Ariana Oppenheimer '26 coxed the boat, with
Courtney FitzMaurice '27 in stroke seat, followed by
Audrey Riddle '26,
Riley Galizio '24,
Prairie Resch '25,
Sophia Clavenna '27,
Carolyn Fortin '26,
Molly McWeeny '26, and
Ava Rust '25 in bow.
After a dominant victory in their heat yesterday and coming in first place at the National Invitational Collegiate Regatta with a narrow victory over Tuft's 2V, the crew knew they had the speed to win a national title.
Tufts got an early lead off of the start, with Williams rowing two-seats down as the boats finished their first 500 meters of the race. According to coxswain Oppenheimer, however, the boat remained calm and confident in the second 500 meters of the race. "Williams is answering stroke per stroke maintaining and stabilizing the speed of Tufts," announcer and Olympic gold medalist Mary Whipple said of the Ephs crew. "Now, what does Williams have in their race plan?" she asked.
The crew was half a length down on Tufts as they crossed the 1,000-meter mark, and both crews battled against each other with open water on the rest of the field.
During the third 500 meters of the race, the Ephs made their move. "Right now Tufts looks like they can feel the pressure that is being poured on by Williams," announcer Adrienne McConnell said. "They waited and after Tufts was done they pushed the go button."
"Whatever coxswain
Ariana Oppenheimer is saying to her Williams teammates they are responding," Whipple said.
"You better get Riley a seat here," called Oppenheimer with roughly 750 meters to go, referencing the team's only senior, six-seat Galizio. "We did a whole lot more than that," she said. "We shifted the tide of the race right then."
The Ephs made a decisive push forward, and gained a two-seat lead over the Jumbos by the time they entered the last 500 meters of the race. "Show them today, love wins gold," Oppenhimer said as the Ephs sprinted for the finish line. The crew grew their lead and crossed the finish line with a time of 6:56.229, ahead of second-place Tufts with a time of 6:58.134.
"The energy in the boat was electric — more talking and encouragement than I had heard but so much confidence and trust," Oppenheimer said. "We never lost our belief in ourselves and eachother, that we had each other's backs and that we could achieve everything we dreamed of together."
"The belief system of Williams – being down for so long and then making that decision – is the best feeling in the world," Whipple said.
Team captain Galizio missed most of the College's senior events because she competed at NCAAs. However, she felt that the sacrifice was a no brainer. "Somebody asked me, 'Riley, was this worth it?' And I said, 'I would have missed my wedding for this."
The 1V competed in the grand final with Trinity and Smith to the rowers' left and Wesleyan, Tufts, and Ithaca to the rowers' right.
Katie Scott '26 coxed the boat, with
Anna Owens '25 in stroke seat, followed by
Maya Tait '26,
Lola Kovalski '25,
Isabel Mikheev '25,
Ellie Davis '26,
Abby Murphy '25,
Claire McDonald '26, and
Ellie Iorio '25 in bow.
After rowing the fastest race of all crews in the heats, the crew was confident that they could perform well in the final.
Tufts crossed the 500 meter mark first with a half-a-boat lead on second-place Wesleyan. Williams and Trinity rowed side by side, vying for the third-place position. The Ephs rowed two seats down on Wesleyan and neck and neck with Trinity as the crews crossed the halfway mark. The same margins held until the last 100 meters of the race, when Trinity with a time of 6:55.979 edged out Williams with a time of 6:56.214 for third place.
"We had a great heat and then came up short in the final," team captain and three-seat Murphy said. "We came into the race wanting the win and believing we could do it. We fought all the way through, and I'm so proud of us for the way we pushed – just in the race but throughout the whole season."
"There are so many strong women around between Divisions I, II, and III, it makes every stroke feel really special and the whole race feel like the culmination of a whole years of work," Assistant Coach
Eileen Russell said. "We are so proud of our 2V and 1V for all of the work they have put in and are really happy with our result and as always we are hungry for more next time."
"Earning third overall as a team was a reflection of the hard work and dedication of everyone on our team and in our support staff," Head Coach
Paula Thoms said. "This young team has had a transformative year, and is primed for continued success both on and off the water. Congratulations to the second varsity eight, whose love and trust in each other allowed us to bring home the first championship in that event since 2013."
