 "Photo: photo by Mark Becker")
The women’s rowing team traveled to Orchard Beach Lagoon on Saturday to face off with local competition in the Metropolitan Intercollegiate Rowing Association’s Spring Championship Regatta, hosted by Iona College. Conditions were calm and temperatures warm, making for excellent rowing conditions.
“We went into this race pretty confident, and rightly so,” junior Christina Costa said.
The Novice Four posted an 8:21 race time in its first heat with a field of five boats for a third-place finish. Fairfield won the heat with an 8:04 race time and went on to beat Fordham again in the Novice Four final. The Lady Rams finished fifth.
The Novice Eight boat also came in third in its first heat (7:55) behind Fairfield and Iona, respectively. Fairfield went on to win in the final, beating Fordham, which finished third by 20 seconds (8:50 to 9:11).
The Varsity Four ably handled the field in its heat and final. Fordham managed the final race well in a tight dash for the finish line. The Four squeezed by Fairfield and Iona for a first-place finish (9:22.7). The Junior Varsity Four also performed well, defeating a field of five for a first-place finish (9:07.9).
“Our Varsity Four race was a little more of a fight, but considering that the girls in my boat – [sophomore] Katie Helmer, [junior] Stephanie Narduzzo, [junior] Katie Bowens and [graduate student] Sarah Lang – had raced four times that day, it was extremely impressive how well we performed,” Costa said. “Not only did we win, but we were controlled and rowed well.”
The highlight of the afternoon came with the Varsity Eight races. Fordham entered two boats into separate heats, one placing better than the other. The Fordham A boat ably handled a field of four for a first-place heat finish (6:59.9), but Fordham B fell to fourth place in its heat and thus did not qualify for the final.
The Varsity Eight final highlighted the ability and authority the Lady Rams possess after trouncing a field of six to take the gold medal (8:10.3).
“It was clear from both the heat and the final that we were undoubtedly the strongest women’s eight crew on the water,” Costa said.
Points accumulated by both Fordham men’s and women’s crews put Fordham in the top spot at the conclusion of the Spring Championship, reaffirming Fordham’s regional dominance in the rowing community.
Out of a field of 14, the top five placing schools included Fordham (157), Army (108), Fairfield (85.5), Iona (60.5) and the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (47).
Following a trip this weekend to Camden, N.J., the rowing squad will compete in the 71st Dad Vail Regatta – the premier event of the season. The Dad Vail, taking place on May 8 and 9 on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, Pa. is the largest collegiate regatta in the nation – involving over 100 colleges and universities from the U.S. and Canada.
In the 2008 season, Fordham performed very well at the Dad Vail, placing second in the Varsity Heavyweight Eight Second Final, led by former coxswain Catherine Mascia, who has since graduated. Although Fordham did not compete well in overall points for the event, finishing as runner-up in the second final, they earned the Lady Rams a No. 8 overall Heavyweight Varsity Eight boat at the Dad Vail.
“It will certainly be a hard fight,” Costa said. “There are some crews we have never seen before, but there are also others that we know don’t measure up to us. We plan to end the season the way we want.”
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