SHAMOKIN DAM, Pa. – The final event of Villanova's four-race fall slate was a successful one as the 'Cats picked up a pair of head-to-head wins against Bucknell Saturday at the Bucknell River Complex.
"We had a great day of racing today," Villanova head coach
Carissa Adams said. "The conditions were great and we are always grateful for the awesome racing opportunity that Bucknell Rowing provides each year."
Villanova sent three boats out on the water Saturday with two of them logging winning performances.
The day started with a strong showing from Nova's Novice Eight team of
Gianna Zajac,
Natalia Brozyna,
Maeve Bonass,
Rachel Patrykus,
Emmi Stanton,
Taylor Pansy, Katie MacClary,
Meg Wolf and
Alexa Sitterly. Racing against three of Bucknell's Novice Eights, the 'Cats crossed in 7:12.69 to finish third, six seconds behind the winning A boat and just a mere four seconds behind Bucknell's B team.
Villanova's first win came from
Cate Donnelly,
Grace Quirk,
Sabrina Pauli,
Hannah Jenkins,
Makenna Davis,
Julia Kreisl,
Mary Tracy,
Sage Santora and
Silvana Torres in the 2V8. The 'Cats took a commanding 12-second win over the Bison, finishing in 7:03.12.
The third and final race of the day was a V8 dual. Villanova's group of
Madison Girard,
Maggie Coyne,
Kira Capaldi,
Sarah Robillard,
Kara Dempsey,
Jadyn Ramos,
Cecilia Jenkins,
Isabella Thorne and
Anna Flynn jumped ahead early and continued to build on its lead in the first 1000 of the race. The Bison continued to push, but the 'Cats were able to hold them off through the second half of the race for a winning time of 6:43.15, besting Bucknell by 11-seconds.
"The athletes came in with a great attitude for the final race of the Fall. We have been training at a high level this year because the athletes are hungry to up-level this program," Adams said. "Their efforts were put to the test today and their hard work paid off. I am proud of the intention the student-athletes have brought to practices and races this season and I'm hopeful that our results this Fall will fuel our desire to continue to build our competitive team culture."
