Photo Gallery by John McClellan
WORCESTER, MA – Williams Womens Crew
opened its season with a sweep of its first races against the
University of New Hampshire, MIT, University of Massachusetts,
Smith, and the College of the Holy Cross. The Ephs dominated in all
four races they entered: Varsity 8, 2nd Varsity 8, Varsity 4, and
3rd Varsity 8. The victories came after a long trip back from
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, marking the end of the Ephs’
annual spring training trip.
A large amount of good work was done down South, with all of the
women continuing to get fit and strong. Spending two weeks on the
water after a long season of indoor winter training was incredibly
productive. Becca Licht ’11, coxswain of the first varsity
eight, commented that spring training was good and hard:
“people are very strong and the rowing skills are coming
along.” Nora Kern ’12, stroke of the third varsity
eight, commented that over the course of the training trip,
“the 3V really made a lot of strides technically and as a
result, we were also able to increase our fitness (and build up
some mean calluses).”
The hard work of spring training clearly paid off as the crew
headed to Worcester this weekend to race. The 1V posted the fastest
time of the event, with a 7:14.6 race down the two-thousand meter
course, coming in nearly 15 seconds faster than closest competitor
UMass. Said Licht, “Our race plan was to have a controlled
start and then focus on the middle thousand meters. We took our
move to break away from the field in the first 400 meters and kept
taking seats.” Racing against Division I crews is also a good
experience for Division III Williams. Licht added that these
Division I programs “provide some of our best competition
before our championship season starts.”
The second varsity eight won its event by a large margin as well,
clocking in at 7:29.9, 15.4 seconds faster than the second-place
UMass crew. The 2V had a solid start, pulling away in the first 400
meters of the race as well. The second varsity eight took a second
move at the 1000-meter mark, gunning for more open water and a fast
time in the headwind. One of the major goals for the 2V as the
season unfolds will be to close the gap between it and the 1V, in
order to prepare for championship season and push the 1V to get
faster.
In the varsity four, the race was closer, with Williams posting a
time of 8:31.31, less than five seconds ahead of the UMass B crew.
3-seat Ellen Stuart ’11 said that the four’s race plan,
of getting a quick start, making a move past the Donohue Rowing
Center docks (approximately 400 meters in), and again at 1200
meters in, “was completed about as best as we were able given
the conditions. Our moves were well placed and well
executed.” Coxswain Liz Zhu ’11 was pleased with the
race, noting that “we rowed a great base throughout the race,
gaining more distance between our bow ball and those of UNH and
UMass even during their moves.”
The third varsity eight again put a large margin on its
competition, coming in first with a time of 7:39. The 3V, made up
of six freshmen, one senior, one junior, and one sophomore, kept up
the intensity throughout the race, pulled away from the field for
an open-water finish. According to Kern, “There was a lot of
intensity throughout. The most exciting moment was when someone
caught an over-the-head crab, but managed to recover so quickly
that the rest of us didn’t even notice.” Despite the
crab, the 3V raced well, and is hot on the heels of the 2V.
The crew will return to Lake Onota this Tuesday for its first
in-season practice on home turf, and is looking forward to racing
WPI, Conn College, and Simmons this Saturday, back at
Worcester’s Lake Quinsigamond. Full results from this
weekend’s racing can be found here.
Lineups:
1V 8+
Bow: Maddie Berky ‘10
2: Sarah Ginsberg ‘10
3: Lindsay Olsen ‘12
4: Dana Golden ‘13
5: Emma Pelegri-O’Day ‘12
6: Kate Shaper ‘12
7: Dorothy MacAusland ‘12
Stroke: Julia Haltermann ‘10
Cox: Becca Licht ‘11
2V 8+:
Bow: Kaitlin Konkel ‘10
2: Kelsey Conklin ‘12
3: Sydney Tooze ‘12
4: Emily Rockett ‘10
5: Abbie Deal ‘12
6: Sara Wallace ‘12
7: Jane McClellan ‘12
Stroke: Laura Caccamo ‘10
Cox: Fiona Wilkes ‘12
1V 4+:
Bow: Adrienne Darrow ‘11
2: Ashley Amos ‘12
3: Ellen Stuart ‘11
Stroke: Anna Soybel ‘11
Cox: Liz Zhu ‘11
3V 8+:
Bow: Katherine Amano ‘13
2: Emma Laukitis ‘13
3: Rachel Hudson ‘10
4: Adriana Van der Linden ‘13
5: Annie Haley ‘13
6: Hayley Swan ‘13
7: Mara Shapero ‘11
Stroke: Nora Kern ‘12
Cox: Alexis Rodriguez ‘13
