TACOMA, Wash. — Lewis & Clark College rowing earned three wins Saturday at the PLU Invite as the women's second varsity eight swept its two races and the men's varsity eight beat Western Washington.
THE BASICS
8:40 a.m.: Women's Varsity 8+ (Event 2), L&C 3rd, 7:47.9
9:00 a.m.: Women's 2V 8+ (Event 4), L&C 1st, 7:55.5
9:30 a.m.: Women's Open 4+ (Event 7), L&C 2nd, 9:29.2
10:00 a.m.: Men's Varsity 8+ (Event 10), L&C 1st, 7:09.1
11:00 a.m.: Women's Varsity 8+ (Event 13), L&C 2nd, 7:39.1
11:30 a.m.: Women's 2V 8+ (Event 16), L&C 1st, 7:53.2
12:40 p.m.: Men's Open 8+ (Event 23), L&C 3rd, 8:08.0
HOW IT HAPPENED
South winds of 10 mph, with gusts above 20 mph, created choppy and worsening conditions on American Lake. Regatta officials canceled all fours races after the first flight. The eights continued racing through whitecaps in the second flight on an adjusted schedule.
The PLU Invitational drew nine programs to American Lake for two flights of 2,000-meter sprint racing. Lewis & Clark entered boats in five event categories against host Pacific Lutheran University, Pacific University, the University of Puget Sound, Western Washington University, the University of Oregon, Seattle Pacific University and the Milwaukee School of Engineering.
The course was relatively flat at the start line but grew rougher over the full 2,000 meters as the wind picked up. Conditions worsened through the morning, and officials removed all remaining fours races after Event 8 to prioritize the eights. The second flight ran on a tighter schedule to complete racing before the wind intensified.
The women's 1V8+ opened the day in Event 2 against Puget Sound and Oregon. Coxswain
Ella Radvany steered
Sadie Meredith-Andrews at stroke,
Carson Cook in seven,
Sydney Case in six,
Meredith Lybbert in five,
Emma Wind in four,
Lyndsay Morris in three,
Clare Kimmel in two and
Zoe Mitchell in bow. Lewis & Clark trailed early as Puget Sound and Oregon battled at the front. The River Otters fell to open water behind by the 1,000-meter mark. Puget Sound won in 7:26.0, Oregon finished 1.5 seconds later in 7:27.5 and Lewis & Clark crossed in 7:47.9.
The women's 2V8+ won Event 4, the first of two victories for the crew. Coxswain
Morgan Anderson directed
Molly Petrowitz at stroke,
Sunny Greenblum in seven,
Sadie Wallsmith in six,
Tori Westgate in five,
Jocelyn Brandon in four, Grace McDonald in three,
Carmen Aaronson in two and
Dagny Fenton in bow. The River Otters trailed Puget Sound at the start but moved past the Loggers through the middle 1,000 meters and pulled away to win by open water. Lewis & Clark finished in 7:55.5, 14.4 seconds ahead of Puget Sound's 8:09.9.
The women's open four placed second in Event 7. Coxswain
Fay Seirafi led
McKinley Garrett at stroke, Camille Blumberg in three,
Ana Cabrera in two and
Masha Glazneva in bow. Lewis & Clark posted a time of 9:29.2, finishing 13.3 seconds behind Pacific Lutheran's 9:15.9. Officials then canceled the remaining fours events because of course conditions.
The men's V8+ earned the program's second win of the day in Event 10. Coxswain
Sophie Homolka guided
Eliot Woods at stroke,
Lukas Perttula in seven,
Tommy Rotelli in six,
Uly Smucker in five,
Jackson Sheire in four,
Kieran Larrabee in three,
Lewis Grimes in two and
Edison Medlock in bow. Lewis & Clark crossed in 7:09.1, finishing 7.9 seconds ahead of Western Washington's second varsity boat at 7:17.0.
By the second flight, whitecaps covered the course. The women's 1V8+ returned for Event 13 against Pacific Lutheran with one lineup adjustment. Wind moved to six, and Case shifted to four. The crews raced closely for the full 2,000 meters, with Lewis & Clark trailing by 7.9 seconds at the finish. The River Otters posted a time of 7:39.1 compared with PLU's 7:31.2. The result improved nearly nine seconds from the morning race despite rougher water.
The women's 2V8+ completed an undefeated day in Event 16 with one change from the first flight.
Masha Glazneva replaced
Dagny Fenton in bow. Anderson's crew defeated Oregon (8:09.6) and Puget Sound (8:10.2) with a time of 7:53.2, more than 16 seconds ahead of the field. The second-flight result improved on the crew's earlier time by 2.3 seconds.
A mixed men's open eight closed the day in Event 23. Coxswain
Gemma Hoyt led
Jackson Sheire at stroke,
Tommy Rotelli in seven,
Uly Smucker in six,
Kieran Larrabee in five,
Eugene Ahoudji in four,
Frasier Shanker in three,
Donovan Taylor in two and
Daniel Macha in bow. The lineup included varsity and novice rowers. Lewis & Clark finished third in 8:08.0 behind Puget Sound (6:51.2) and Western Washington (7:07.3). Several athletes in the lineup raced their first 2,000-meter piece.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Both the women's 1V8+ and 2V8+ posted faster times in the second flight than in the first despite the worsening conditions.
- Seven members of the women's squad made their debut. Blumberg, Fenton, Garrett, Petrowitz, Seirafi, Wallsmith and Westgate raced their first 2,000-meter competition.
- Ahoudji, Hoyt, Medlock, Shanker, Smucker and Taylor made their debut for the men's team.
WHAT'S NEXT
Lewis & Clark travels to the Hagg Lake Invite hosted by Pacific on Saturday.
