EUGENE, Ore. – The Lewis & Clark Pioneers split their squads, sending the men to Eugene to race on Dexter Lake at the Collegiate Covered Bridge Regatta and the WSquad to the Pioneer Invitational on their home course on Vancouver Lake. Racing was delayed two hours from start time due to gusty wind and white caps on the water but conditions drastically improved throughout the morning to enable full participation in the regatta.

THE BASICS
10:50 AM, Men's varsity 4+ (A)
11:40 AM, Men's varsity 8+
1:20 PM, Men's varsity 4+ (B)
1:50 PM, Men's novice 4+

HOW IT HAPPENED
The first race of the day in Eugene was the first heat of the varsity 4+'s at 10:50 am. The varsity 4+ A boat were the top finishers of the day, earning fourth place just four seconds off of University of Oregon's A boat. Sophie Homolka was at the helm, with Lewis Grimes in stroke, Devon Hall in three, Caleb Novotny in two, and Paul Kelly in the bow. They crossed the line in a time of 7:28.1.

The Pioneers raced a composite varsity-novice 8+ in Lewis & Clark's second appearance on the racecourse at 11:40am. Grimes, Hall, and Novotny all hot-seated into the boat from the varsity 4+ due to shortened centers between races after the wind delay. The crew made it down the course in a time of 8:04.3 and was helmed by freshman Max Baker, with Grimes in stroke, Hall in seven, Keith Hipp in six, Novotny in five, Kieran Larrabee in four, Chaszar Waldron in three, Chance Inouye in two, and Daniel Macha in the bow. Hipp and Macha both joined the team in February making the 8+ their debut race.

The men's varsity 4+ B boat came down the course at 1:20, placing fifth just behind University of Oregon's B boat. The crew beat out the UC Berkeley lightweight boat by two seconds in an exciting sprint to the line. They finished with a time of 8:19.5 with Homolka at the helm, Grimes in four, Larrabee in three, Novotny in two, and Kelly in the bow.

The Pioneers closed out the regatta with the men's novice 4+ at 1:50 pm, facing off against conference rival Puget Sound in the four boat race. The crew placed fourth, underrating the other crews and focusing on executing their race strategy of length and composure. Baker was again at the helm with Inouye in stroke, Waldron in three, Hipp in two, and Macha in the bow.

BY THE NUMBERS

• Hipp and Macha joined the team in the early spring and made their racing debut at Covered Bridge
• Team captains Grimes and Novotny raced the most of the squad, with three trips each down the course

WHAT'S NEXT
The Pioneers will head to Vancouver Lake for racing on April 19th for the Rainier Cup, the companion race to the Northwest Conference Championships.