WORCESTER, Mass. -- On a day where high winds on Lake Quinsigamond ultimately defeated almost everyone, the Bates men's first varsity eight was able to earn a bronze medal Saturday at the New England Rowing Championship.
Led by sophomore coxswain
Darien Chiang (Quincy, Mass.) and junior stroke seat
Luke Desmaison (New York City), the No. 5 nationally ranked men's 1V won their heat in 6:08.573, outracing No. 2 Williams (6:09.729) along the way. Then they placed third out of six boats in the grand final, crossing the finish line in 7:23.192, ahead of Tufts, Williams, and MIT. Trinity won the race in 7:10.517 and Wesleyan took second in 7:19.984.
"Despite the challenging conditions, the men's first varsity eight put together a great piece in their grand final, pulling through Tufts with only a couple hundred meters to go," said head coach
Peter Steenstra.
Unfortunately, the winds emerged victorious on many fronts on Saturday. Things started out well for the women's first varsity eight. Led by first-year coxswain
Hannah Herbst (Larkspur, Calif.) and senior captain stroke seat
Hannah Burdick (Lyme, N.H.), the No. 1 nationally ranked Bobcats won their heat in 7:03.123, beating runner-up Trinity (7:05.089) by just under two seconds.
Then they placed sixth in their grand final in 8:27.303, but needless to say there were extenuating circumstances.
"The winds significantly picked up and when the WV8 went out for their grand final their boat was blown sideways and pinned up against the starting platform," Steenstra said. "The extent of the damage was not known until the race was underway and Herbst realized she had lost her steering."
The day started out great, as the women's second and third varsity eights made their respective grand finals, with the 2V winning their heat in 7:19.230 and the 3V winning in 8:19.603. The men's second varsity eight also made their grand final, placing second to Williams in their heat in 6:36.480.
But unfortunately all the non-first varsity eight grand finals got canceled due to the high winds.
The Bobcats will attempt to have a normal regatta when they return to Lake Quinsigamond to compete in the National Invitational Rowing Championship, which doubles as the NESCAC Championship, on Sunday, May 11.
Bates MV8 lineup: Bow:
Erik Lindholm; 2:
Sean Christiansen; 3:
Luke Johnson; 4:
Conor McGuckin; 5:
Oliver Firmenich; 6:
Charles Renvyle; 7:
George Fauver; Stroke:
Luke Desmaison; c:
Darien Chiang
Bates M2V8 lineup: Bow:
Thomas Pacinda; 2:
John Cleary; 3:
Benji Richards; 4:
Leo Sullivan; 5:
Jimmy Staller; 6:
Ben Auerbach; 7:
Kelly McKaige; Stroke:
Ian Van Loo; c:
Izzy Beck
Bates M3V8 lineup: Bow:
Finian Guinney; 2:
Hugh McCabe; 3:
Cooper Drazek; 4:
Nicholas Hoerle; 5:
Alex Appleton; 6:
Sam Perozek; 7:
Wiley Anderson; Stroke:
Peter Gratwick; c:
Micah Shimizu
Bates M4V8 lineup: Bow:
Randy Li; 2:
Louis Consigli; 3:
EJ Herrmann; 4:
Diego Davalos; 5:
Xavier Drouin; 6:
Sam Williams 7:
Mason Choiniere Barr; Stroke:
Micah Johnson; c:
Hannah Daher
Bates M2V4 lineup: Bow:
Ryan Berger; 2:
Aidan O'Brien; 3:
Robert Meier; 4:
Lorenzo Songsare-Shevy; c:
Melinda Kostrinsky
Bates WV8 lineup: Bow:
Cal Dagner; 2:
Tatum Holley; 3:
Isabelle Martin; 4:
Maggie Gill; 5:
Quinn Gleason; 6:
Olivia Szachta; 7:
Olivia Smith; Stroke:
Hannah Burdick; c:
Hannah Herbst
Bates W2V8 lineup: Bow:
Hannah de Fontaine; 2:
Mia Senturk; 3:
Maddie Kemp; 4:
Maggie Kornfeind; 5:
Megan O'Donnell; 6:
Greta Oberdiek; 7:
Elizabeth Gramley; Stroke:
Rylee Eaton; c:
Leah Brody
Bates W3V8 lineup: Bow:
Miryam Keller;; 2:
Evie Fox; 3:
Arden Minor; 4:
Charlotte Comrack; 5:
Mackenzie Higgins; 6:
Kiki Hillery; 7:
Froney Dreher; Stroke:
Caitlin Regan; c:
Shoshana Levy
Bates W4V8 lineup: Bow:
Kat O'Connell; 2:
Ella Lisle; 3:
Olivia Hill; 4:
Dominique Bunnell; 5:
Merrill Doherty; 6:
Julia Buzacott; 7:
Eva Calcutt; Stroke:
Virginia Adams; c:
Sara Maquera
Bates W2V4 lineup: Bow:
Ella Westhoff; 2:
Noa Hart; 3:
Willow West; 4:
Taylor Glick; c:
Sarah Wallace
