PHILADELPHIA – Saturday brought a strong showing for Villanova at the Head of the Schuykill Regatta with five top-10 finishes, including a second-place showing for the Championship Fours A boat.

"We had a very special day and the energy was alive throughout the entire day," Villanova head coach Carissa Adams said. "We had another strong performance across the board and I was proud of every athlete that was able to compete today. This is always a special event for our program as it is held on homecoming weekend and we are able to reconnect with our alumni along the banks of the river. The enthusiasm for the program has never been higher and the support the athletes are receiving from our alumni, parents, and friends is helping to fuel our championship team culture."
 
The silver medal marks the first time that Villanova has earned a medal at the regatta since 2017 and the best finish for Villanova at the regatta. The Wildcats' team of Madison Girard, Maggie Coyne, Kira Capaldi, Sarah Robillard and Kara Dempsey crossed in 14:57.645, just 14 seconds behind a winning George Washington squad.
 
In the Novice Fours to start the day, Villanova's N4A boat of Lorelei Cadorette, Natalia Brozyna, Emmi Stanton, Mary Tracy and Maeve Bonass logged a 16:38.117 finish that was good enough for fourth. The N4B team, Jessica Repetto, Taylor Pansy, Caitlyn Baker, Jamison Dean and Samantha Simpkins, were 14^th in 18:20.997.

"This was our walk-on's debut and they performed very well," Adams added.
 
Aside from the second-place Championship Fours team, the 'Cats had a second boat in the top-10 of the 52-boat field with the B group of Gianna Zajac, Jadyn Ramos, Cecilia Jenkins, Isabella Thorne and Anna Flynn checking in ninth at 15:19.041. In the 4C, Olivia Kachurak, Hannah Jenkins, Makenna Davis, Sage Santora and Sabrina Pauli were 24^th with a time of 15:51.106.

"The athletes were able to execute their plan that we had been practicing in the weeks leading up to the regatta," Adams said.
 
Villanova has one boat in three different Eight races in the latter part of the day.
 
The Novice Eights race saw Villanova's team of Cadorette, Brozyna, Rachel Patrykus, Mary Tracy, Bonass, Kristina Perez, Katie MacClary, Meg Wolf and Alexa Sitterly cross ninth with a time of 15:32.499. Villanova's Club Championship Eights crew of Girard, Hannah Jenkins, Davis, Julia Kreisl, Pauli, Stanton, Silvana Torres, Santora and Caroline Colgan was 16^th in 14:15.614.

The final boat to compete for Villanova on Saturday was in the Championship Eights, the most competitive event of the day in a field that held local and international teams, inclduing the Danish National Team. Cate Donnelly, Coyne, Capaldi, Robillard, Dempsey, Ramos, Jenkins, Thorne and Flynn punched in a 13:28.110 time that landed the group eighth, an improvement from last year's performance that closed the gap between it and local competition.

"We will be transitioning into our 2K racing format over the next two weekends," Adams said. "We are grateful for the time we have had on the water this fall and feel our training has prepared our athletes to be competitive at their upcoming races."
 
Next weekend will be the lone fall event that takes the Wildcats outside of the Keystone State as the team heads to Ridgefield, N.J. for the NYRA Invitational on Nov. 5.