SARATOGA, NY - Marist women's rowing traveled to Fish Creek in Saratoga, NY, to compete at the New York State Championships. While we welcomed some warmer weather this weekend, it was not without some classic intermittent spring showers. There was a moderate headwind through the morning heats, dying down for the finals. The 1st Varsity 8+, 2nd Varsity 8+, and Varsity 4+ all competed in heats and performed well, placing each boat in their event's grand final, while the 2nd Varsity 4+ and Frosh/Novice 8+ were both final only.

The 1st Varsity 8+ consisted of coxswain Ariana Novero, Abby Deane, Gabrielle Insero, Summer Starrett, Lillian Iannaccone, Sophie Forster, Megan McGowan, Natalie Ronan, and  Kaleigh Tompkins.
Heat Results: COLGATE 7:31.71, MARIST 7:46.819, SKIDMORE 7:58.312, ARMY 8:06.52, ST. LAWRENCE 8:27.22
Final Results: COLGATE 7:01.44, SYRACUSE 7:04.734, BATES 7:07.75, ITHACA 7:08.264, MARIST 7:09.987, WILLIAM SMITH 7:12.481.

"Going into the grand final, we knew we were facing a tough set of crews, so we focused on our race plan and incorporated changes that we've been working on in practice. We ended up in a tight placement with Bates and Ithaca, with a slight advantage over William Smith that led to exciting racing right through to the finish line"
-        Coxswain Ariana Novero, Class of 2026
RESULTS: 5th out of 15

The 2nd Varsity 8+ consisted of coxswain Rebecca Robinson, Amelia Nelson, Shelby McDougall, Jessica Zygmunt, Kora Eckelman, Samantha Stortz, Anna Fedders, Jennifer Liguori, and Emily Liguori.
Heat Results: MARIST 7:55.99, SMITH 7:59.187, SKIDMORE 8:46.677, ST. LAWRENCE 9:09.529, ROCHESTER 9:25.176
Final Results: MARIST 7:16.85, BATES 7:21.348, SMITH 7:25.658, WILLIAM SMITH 7:29.255, COLGATE 7:30.636, ITHACA 7:34.347

"As we went into the grand final, we knew the competition would be tight, but we stayed internal as a crew. Our goal was to take the race one 500m piece at a time and start opening up on crews through the thousand. It was close between us and Bates, but we were able to walk away in the sprint to secure first place and a Gold Medal in the 2nd Varsity 8+ event."
-        Coxswain Rebecca Robinson, Class of 2026
RESULTS: 1st out of 13

The Varsity 4+ consisted of coxswain Carina Pascucci, Caitlin Bartman, Sydney Macchia, Jenna Jaffe, and Rebecca Paul.
Heat Results: MARIST 8:26.56, BINGHAMTON 8:49.837, CANISIUS 9:03.516, NAZARETH 9:35.652
Final Results: SYRACUSE 8:03.48, MARIST 8:11.576, ALBANY 8:16.417, BINGHAMTON 8:22.830, COLGATE 8:31.921, UNION 8:43.359

"The first race was really solid, and we were able to walk away from everyone before we hit the 750 down. For the afternoon, we were looking to keep it tight with Syracuse, and we stayed competitive with them until the end. We were really happy with how each race went, and we were able to improve on our time from the morning to the afternoon, and we had a lot of fun."
-            Coxswain Carina Pascucci, Class of 2026
RESULTS: 2nd out of 13

The 2nd Varsity 4+ consisted of coxswain Grace Foley, Gianna Angelucci, Ella Manion, Stella McGinty, and Lilly Green.
Final Results: UNION 8:22.5, COLGATE 8:27.504, MARIST 8:32.729, NAZARETH 9:23.376

 "Our boat felt really strong and connected throughout our race; we made the best out of an okay start and stayed close and competitive with the other crews. We're really getting better every week, and this race really proved it!"
-        Coxswain Grace Foley, Class of 2027
RESULTS: 3rd out of 6**
**Note this crew received Silver Medals since Bates is not a NYS school**

The Frosh/Novice 8+ for the morning race consisted of coxswain Brooke Dini, Elizabeth Klik, Sofia Renals, Carlie Pazderski, Ashleigh Coyne, Anna Iannucci, Grace Stoner, Elena Waldbillig, and Gabi White.
Final Results: BATES 7:29.031, ARMY 7:30.828, MARIST 7:39.39, VASSAR 7:49.466, RIT 7:53.654, ALBANY 7:56.389
"Our boat felt very strong today! The race was really close for the first half of the race before Army and Bates were able to pull ahead, and we had also pulled ahead of the other crews."
-            Coxswain Brooke Dini, Class of 2028
RESULTS: 3rd out of 6

With a gold medal in the 2nd Varsity 8+, silver medals in the Varsity 4+ and the 2nd Varsity 4+, bronze in the Novice 8+, and a strong performance in the 1st Varsity 8+, the Red Foxes took home the Jim Tucci Women's Point Trophy for the second consecutive year. Also, they secured the Sanford Cup for Overall Team Points, a testament to the depth and consistency of the entire program.

Coach's Quote
"We had a good day at NYS Championships for the whole team, and winning medals is always fun for the athletes. Coming home with the Women's Point Trophy for the second year in a row, as well as the Sanford Cup for Overall Team Points, was certainly special. We are looking forward to the next two weeks of training and finding more speed as we prepare for the Women's Sprints."
-            Tom Sanford, Head Coach and Director of Rowing

Next up for Marist Women's Rowing: Women's Sprints in Worcester, MA.