RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif. – The Lewis & Clark Pioneers raced on Lake Natoma on Sunday morning to compete in finals at the Western Intercollegiate Rowing Association Regatta. The morning again started with light rain and cool temperatures, with flat water and no wind on the course.
THE BASICS
8:00 AM, Men's varsity 8+
8:40 AM, Women's varsity 8+
9:30 AM, Women's second varsity 8+
10:10 AM, Open-gender 2x
10:20 AM, Men's varsity 4+
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Pioneers opened competition in the first race of the day, the men's varsity 8+ third final. Lewis & Clark faced off against California Polytechnic, San Luis Obispo in a duel-style race. They finished behind the mustangs, but raced hard down the course, improving on their Saturday time by nine seconds. The boat was helmed by Sophie Homolka, with Lewis Grimes in stroke, Paul Kelly in seven, Keith Hipp in six, Caleb Novotny in five, Kieran Larrabee in four, Chaszar Waldron in three, Daniel Macha in two, and Alex Skiles in the bow.
The women's varsity 8+ came down the course next for the Pioneers in the seven-boat petite final. Conference rivals Puget Sound and Pacific Lutheran were both in the petite, finishing in first and third respectively. The Pioneers placed fourth overall, edging out Long Beach State University by two seconds. They rowed a season-best time of 7:26.7, beating their Saturday time by two seconds. The boat was helmed by Morgan Anderson, with Sadie Meredith-Andrews in stroke, Zoe Mitchell in seven, Libby Barrese in six, Clare Kimmel in five, Emma Wind in four, Amber Hayes in three, Meredith Lybbert in two, and Charlie Bastunskiy in the bow.
The women's second varsity 8+ was the next boat to race. With six entries total, the second varsity was the only boat to make it to a grand final. They faced off against both Division II and club programs, as well as conference rival Pacific Lutheran. The Pioneers outraced the Lutes for the second weekend in a row, taking the fifth place spot with an 18 second lead. The boat was helmed by Max Baker, with Sunny Greenblum in stroke, Carmen Aaronson in seven, Ella Shanava in six, Charlotte Gregson in five, Masha Glazneva in four, Kaia Hirsch in three, Alany Padilla Camacho in two, and Ana Cabrera in the bow.
The open-gender 2x competed in the inaugural exhibition race for the regatta. The Pioneers faced off against two University of California, Santa Barbara boats, jumping into the lead off the start and never relinquishing it. They won with a commanding 43 second lead over the second place finisher with Barrese in stroke and Mitchell in bow.
The final race of the day for the Pioneers was the men's varsity four. The Pioneers faced off against five other boats, including seasonal rival University of Oregon, in a fast and competitive final. Lewis & Clark was in a dogfight with Arizona State University coming through the final 250 meters, with boats matching each other stroke for stroke. The Pioneers came in sixth by just one tenth of a second. Homolka was at the helm, with Grimes in stoke, Devon Hall in three, Novotny in two, and Kelly in the bow.
BY THE NUMBERS
The men's varsity 8+ graduates Novotny and Skiles
The men's 8+ improved on their Saturday race time by nine seconds
The WSquad varsity 8+ graduates Barrese
The WSquad varsity 8+ improved on their Saturday race time by two seconds
The WSquad second varsity 8+ graduates Gregson
The WSquad second varsity 8+ were only one second off their time in Saturday racing
Barrese and Mitchell dubbed between the varsity 8+ and open gender double
WHAT'S NEXT
The Pioneers conclude the 2024-25 season at the WIRA Regatta.
