The Bates women's second varsity eight took home the gold medal at the NCAA Rowing Championships on Saturday as the Bobcats' two crews combined to finish second overall for the sixth time in program history.
Led by Coxswain Abigail Bierman '17 (Bethlehem, N.Y.) and Stroke Julia Mason '17 (Niskayuna, N.Y.), the second varsity eight left no doubt in their dominating performance in the grand final. They rowed to the finish in 6:50.927, about nine seconds ahead of runner-up Wellesley.Â
For the second straight day, the W2V8 led wire-to-wire in their victory. The Bobcats led by about four seconds after the first 500 meters, finishing that segment of the 2K race in an outstanding 1:39.312. Their lead only grew as the race went on as they crossed the finish line well ahead of both Wellesley and third place Williams. In fact, they beat the Ephs by nearly 16 seconds.
W2V8: Bow: Margaux Joselow '16 (Manchester, N.H.), Grace Jurkovich '18 (St. Paul, Minn.), Sophia Merelas '18 (Pelham, N.Y.), Kiera Degener-O'Brien '16 (Portland, Ore.), Ella Bourland '19 (Ann Arbor, Mich.), Phoebe Long '19 (Riverside, Conn.), Molly Pritz '17 (Ithaca, N.Y.); Stroke: Julia Mason '17 (Niskayuna, N.Y.), Cox: Abigail Bierman '17 (Bethlehem, N.Y.)
