April 20, 2008
Boston, Mass. – The Irish rowing team won four of five races on Sunday afternoon at the Charles River Challenge as head coach Martin Stone’s squad wrapped up competition in the two-day event. Notre Dame was victorious against Boston University in the varsity eight, second varsity eight, varsity four and novice eight races, while the second varsity four crew finished second to Dartmouth and topped Boston University race.
After winning its morning race on Saturday and finishing third in the afternoon session, the No. 17 varsity eight crew of coxswain Kelsey Otero (Meqoun, Wis.), Lauren Buck (Flint, Mich.) Kendra Short (Everett, Wash.), Christine Trezza (Staten Island, N.Y.), Allison Marsh (Mashpee, Mass.), Laura Pearson (Bloomington, Minn.), Mary Quinn (Plymouth Meeting, Pa.), Amanda Polk (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and Julie Sobolewski (Haddonfield, N.J) defeated Boston University by eight just over eight seconds. The Irish crossed the finish line in 6:32.60, while Boston University posted a time of 6:40.68.
Notre Dame’s second eight varsity crew of coxswain Stephanie Szegedi (South Lyon, Mich.), Casey Robinson (Dulles, Va.), Carol Ann Michel (Princeton, N.J.), Emily Crosby (Middletown, N.J.), Kristan Madison (Saginaw, Mich.), Elli Greybar (Western Springs, Ill.), Anni Nowhitney (Ballston Spa, N.Y.), Brittney Kelly (Wexford, Pa.), and Erica Copeland (Marietta, Ga.) rowed to an impressive win as the Irish finished with a time of 6:41.20, while Boston University completed the race in 6:57.04.
The varsity four boat won its third race of the weekend as the crew of coxswain Sarah Keithley (Austin, Tex.), Laura Petnuch (Pittsburgh, Pa.), Braegan Padley (Boise, Idaho), Bridget Leone (Garden City, N.Y.) and Mallory Glass (Okemos, Mich.) finished more than 13 seconds ahead of Boston University. The Irish completed the course in 7:38.30, while BU posted a time of 7:51.46.
The second varsity four boat of coxswain Katherine McMackin (Chevy Chase, Md.), Lisa Bunn (Wilsonville, Ore.), Mary Kate McNamara (North Potomac, Md.), Erica Castro-Larsen (Lake Matthews, Calif.) was edged by Dartmouth in the three-boat race. The Big Green finished with a time of 7:37.90, while Notre Dame posted a time of 7:39.10. Boston University took third in 8:07.10. The race between Dartmouth and the Irish was a near mirror image of the previous race Saturday afternoon in which Notre Dame came out on top by just one second.
The novice eight boat of Jimena DiIorio (Asuncion, Paraguay), Amanda Cosfol (Broomall, Pa.), Megan Keegan (Canton, Ohio), Erika Shults (Virginia Beach, Va.), Mary Theresa DiSipio (Bryn Mawr, Pa.), Katherine Linnenmanstons (Milwaukee, Wis.), Stephanie Gretsch (Downers Grove, Ill.), Christina Buckley (Huntington, N.Y.) and Genevieve Malone (Dayton, Ohio) won its first race of the weekend as the Irish rowed to a 25-second win over Boston University. Notre Dame posted a winning time of 7:01.90, while Boston University had a time of 7:26.40.
“I thought we came back today (Sunday) and had a good day of racing,” head coach Martin Stone said. “The varsity eight rowed much better today than they did on Saturday. The second varsity eight and varsity four boats as well as the novice eight were particularly strong and seemed to row well all weekend. Our second varsity eight just got edged out against Dartmouth. “All in all, this was a good weekend us and a great experience for our team because of the history and tradition of rowing on the Charles River. “It was a solid two days of competition as we prepare this week for the BIG EAST Championship next Sunday.”