Editor's Note: The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference is celebrating its 40th anniversary season in 2020-21. Throughout this summer, the conference will be announcing all-anniversary teams for each sport it currently sponsors. In conjunction, the Marist Athletics Department will highlight its achievements from the MAAC era.
 
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POUGHKEEPSIE, New York – Marist Women's Rowing joined the MAAC prior to the 1997 season. As the MAAC Championships began that year, no program has had more success than the Red Foxes.
 
Over the course of 24 years, Marist has captured 11 conference titles, the most in MAAC history, and has never finished below third in a MAAC Championship. Marist was the first team in MAAC history to claim an automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament, and won the last MAAC Championship that was hosted in 2019. In addition, the program has developed numerous student-athletes who have achieved success at both the conference level, national and world stages, and across the academic landscape.
 

MAAC 40TH ANNIVERSARY TEAM

• Maggie Stumpf – 2000-04: Three-time MAAC champion | Two-time MAAC All-Academic Team selection | Competed in the USRowing ID Camp in November of 2001
• Hillary Saeger – 2003-07: Two-time MAAC champion | Raced in three World Championships, rowing in the U.S. Lightweight Quadruple Scull boat | Following graduation, competed in the 2009 World Rowing Championships in Poznan, Poland | Won a silver medal in the 2010 World Championships in New Zealand, and a bronze medal in the 2011 World Championships in Bled, Slovenia
• Lisa D'Aniello – 2004-08: Three-time MAAC champion | Rowed in the U.S. Lightweight Doubles boat at the 2008 U23 World Rowing Championships in Brandenburg, Germany, where her boat took 6th place in the "B" final
• Julia Rigothi – 2013-17: Class of 2017 and 2019M | 2017 Marist Female Sportsperson of the Year | Two-time team captain | Five-time MAAC Boat of the Week winner | Competed at the 2016 U23 World Championship United States National Team Trials in Women's Double | Gold medalist at the 2016 Royal Canadian Henley Regatta in U23 Women's Quad
• Sydney Ford – 2016-20: 2019 MAAC Champion | 2019 All-MAAC First Team | 2019 NYS Championships gold medalist in V8 | Holds second-best erg 2k score in program history | Gold medalist in Women's Intermediate 2x and 4x at 2019 USRowing Club National Championships | Bronze medalist in U23 Women's 8 at 2018 Royal Canadian Henley Regatta

 

HEAD COACH TOM SANFORD

• The MAAC spotlighted Director of Rowing Tom Sanford in the 40^th Anniversary Team.
• Sanford took over as Marist's Director of Rowing in the 2001-02 season, and became the women's head coach in 2007-08.
• Marist has won three MAAC championships in Sanford's tenure as women's head coach, and seven conference titles since he took over as Director of Rowing.
• In 2013, Marist earned the MAAC's first automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament when the Red Foxes won the conference title. Marist made a return NCAA trip in 2019.

 

1997-99: THE FIRST TITLES

• 1997 – Marist earns its first MAAC championship since joining the conference in impressive fashion, collecting 90 points, 34 ahead of second-place Iona. The team's Lightweight Varsity 8 finished third in the Dad Vail Small College National Championships.
• 1998 – The Red Foxes improved even further with its second-straight title, beating the next closest team by 48 points. The Freshmen 8 and Lightweight 4 placed first and second, respectively, in the New York State Championship Regatta
• 1999 – Marist clinched the three-peat with 96 points. All three championships came under Head Coach Ed Clark.
• Among the rowers who were a part of the three titles included Kristin Casavant, Claire Dienhart, Sarah Hyres, and Melissa Pascale.

 

2001-03: THE NEW MILLENIUM

• 2001 – On the Housatonic River, Marist won five of the seven races for 154 points and the program's fourth MAAC title, downing defending champ and host Fairfield. Elsewhere, that crew was President's Cup champions, and fifth and sixth at the EAWRC Women's Eastern Sprints and NYS Championships, respectively.
• 2002 – Returning to Orchard Beach Lagoon in Pelham, NY, the Novice 8 (7:26.8), Junior Varsity 4 (8:02.5) and Varsity 8 (7:03.1) all won to power Marist to its second consecutive MAAC title and fifth overall. Later, the program combined for second at the NYS Championships, while the Varsity 8 and Novice 8 competed in the Avaya Regatta.
• 2003 – Never finishing out of the top two in every entry, Marist corralled 109 points to secure its second three-peat, giving the Red Foxes six of the last seven MAAC championships.
• Rick Lambert was an assistant for Audrey Friedrichsen under the 2001 crew, and took over as head coach with Sanford as the director for the 2002 and 2003 squads.
• In this timespan, Maggie Stumpf and Lindsay Martel played a role in all three MAAC victories.
• Susan Burke, Liz Lenkowski, Sarah St. Germain, Krystyn Satko, Heather Bachman, Megan Edwards, and Lynne Leach also won three MAAC Championships during their times at Marist, varying from 1999-2004.

 

2006-08: THREE-PEAT TRIFECTA

• 2006 – The brief title drought ended with Marist's seven MAAC championship. Head Coach Kelly Harris was named MAAC Coach of the Year as the Red Foxes gathered a MAAC Championship-record 192 points at Mercer Lake. In the ECAC Rowing Championships, the Varisty 4 and Lightweight 8 took second place, while the Varsity 8 was third.
• 2007 – A slim, two-point margin of victory was enough for Marist's eighth MAAC title. The Re and White's 173 points edged Loyola, thanks to wins in the Varsity 8, Women's Pair, Varsity Lightweight 4, and Varsity 4. The V8 won bronze in the grand final at the ECAC Metro Championships in a time of 6:37.087, while the 2V8 also reached the grand final.
• 2008 – Marist became the first, and only, team with three separate eras of three-straight MAAC Championships with its ninth overall, and the first with Sanford as head coach. The Foxes recorded 165 points in the victory. Later on, Marist's Novice 8 and Varsity 4 were second and third, respectively, in the Williams Regatta.
• Holly Adler, Laura Coppola, Catherine Danaher, Lisa D'Aniello, Marissa Eigenbrood, Janet Mathes, Rachel Mewaldt, Christine Page, Caitlin Perry, Sarah Shoemaker, and Lindsay Wright each won three MAAC titles in that dynasty.

 

2013: TRAILBLAZERS

• In securing its 10^th MAAC Championship, the Red Foxes became the first MAAC program to earn the NCAA's automatic qualifier. Marist recorded 45 points, beating out Fairfield by two after settling for second in the MAAC championships since 2008.
• The Second Varsity 8 was named an All-MAAC boat.
• At the NYS Championships, four boats made the finals: the Novice 4 (second), Junior Varisty 8 (second), Varsity 8 (third), and Varsity 4 (sixth).
• Marist's V8 placed fifth at the Dad Vail Regatta.
• All three of Marist's entries at the NCAA Tournament improved on their heat times by double digits. The V8 had the largest improvement in almost 40 seconds, concluding the event with a 7:16.290.

 

2019: RETURN TO GLORY

• The Red Foxes took home its 11^th MAAC Championship at Cooper River Park, unseating five-time defending champion Jacksonville with 53 points.
• After all three of Marist's entries had the fastest heat times, the Varsity 8 and Second Varsity 8 won gold, while the Varsity 4 earned silver.
• Sanford was tabbed Coach of the Year.
• Five Red Foxes were chosen for the All-MAAC First Team: Clodagh Deasy, Sydney Ford, Caitlin Green, Eliza Hartford, and Bernadette Winby. Selena Mildon was named to the All-MAAC Second Team.
• In its second NCAA Tournament appearance, each of Marist's entries posted their top times in the finals on the final day.

 

NOTEWORTHY ACADEMIC FEATS

• Since joining the program, Sanford has overseen 250 selections to the MAAC All-Academic Team.
• Melissa DiBernardo, '02 was selected to the 2002 Verizon/CoSIDA Academic All-District I At-Large Second Team, and won the President's Academic Achievement award in the same year.
• Bea Bradford, '19 was awarded the Boehringer Ingelheim Award for Excellence in Scientific Research upon her graduation in May of 2019.