No. 8 Women's Crew Wins Varsity Fours at UMass Lowell Invitational Saturday
Links: Results
LOWELL, Mass. — Racing for the first time since receiving a national ranking earlier this week — the first such honor in program history — the eighth-ranked Merrimack College women's crew team won the Varsity Fours at the UMass Lowell Invitational on Saturday.
The Basics
Event: UMass Lowell Invitational
Location: Merrimack River | Lowell, Mass.
What They Said
Head coach Dave LeFebvre: "We won the qualifying heat by a comfortable margin over Bryant, Franklin Pierce, and UML. However, it was not our best performance. The goal for the final was to row with more composure and confidence. The wind picked up quite a bit for the final making the conditions challenging in the first half of the race. We kept calm and controlled, which led us to victory."
How It Happened
The Warriors utilized the same lineup as last week, when they finished second at the Knecht Cup in New Jersey. The Merrimack lineup consisted of coxswain Jess Khoury (Bay Shore, N.Y.), stroke Aubrey O'Neill (Pawcatuck, Conn.), third seat Lydia Staschke (Guilford, Conn.), fourth seat Lauren Blazon (Lowell, Mass.) and Tasha Wypych (Wellington, New Zealand) on the bow.
The course the Warriors raced on Saturday is one of the possible venues for the 2024 Summer Olympics, should Boston win the bid to host the games.
After finishing second at the Knecht Cup last weekend, the Warriors were ranked No. 8 by the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association earlier this week. It was the first time the Merrimack program garnered a national ranking.
Results
Qualifying Heat
1) Merrimack - 7:06.57
2) UMass Lowell - 7:17.03
3) Franklin Pierce - 7:29.68
4) Bryant - 7:47.85
Finals
1) Merrimack - 7:51.61
2) Bowdoin - 8:21.54
3) Franklin Pierce - 8:25.37
4) UMass Lowell - 8:25.59
5) Brandeis - 8:45.41
6) Endicott - 9:55.04
Up Next
Merrimack returns to the water next Saturday (April 25), when it travels to Worcester to race in the NE-10 Cup, held on Lake Quinsigamond.
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