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Brown University’s heavyweight men’s rowing coach, Paul Cooke was named the Heavyweight Ivy League Coach of the Year Thursday.

Cooke has been at the helm of the Bear’s program since 2002. The crew recently finished runner-up to Yale at the 2022 Eastern Sprints Regatta.

The program will compete June 3-5 at the 2022 IRA National Championship.

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The longtime head coach of the Yale University men’s lightweight rowing program, Andy Card, was awarded the title of Ivy League Lightweight Crew Coach of the Year by the Ivy League Thursday.

Card has been coaching the Bulldogs since 1990 and recently led the crew to an Ivy League Championship Sunday at Eastern Sprints.

Yale’s lightweight program will compete June 3-5 at the IRA National Championship.

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PHOTO BY LISA WORTHY

The 2022 NCAA Women’s Rowing Championship crews are set.

The event is set to take place in Sarasota-Bradenton, Florida, May 27-29. Here are the qualifiers and their seeding:

Division I Women’s Rowing—

At-Large Selections: Brown, California, Duke, Michigan, Oregon State, Pennsylvania, Rutgers, Southern California, Syracuse, Washington, Yale.

Division II Women’s Rowing—

Programs selected: Central Oklahoma, Embry-Riddle (Florida), Thomas Jefferson University, Mercyhurst, Seattle Pacific; and Western Washington.

Division III Women’s Rowing—

According to the NCAA, The following are the berths that are allocated:  Pool A – four (Pool A consists of conferences that have been awarded automatic qualification); Pool B/C – four (Pools B and C include independents, institutions from conferences that do not meet automatic-qualification standards and Pool A institutions that did not receive their conference’s automatic qualification.)

Pool A
Liberty League — * Ithaca
Mid-Atlantic Rowing Conference — * St. Mary’s (Maryland)
New England Small College Athletic Conference — * Bates
New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference — * Wellesley

*Automatic qualifier
 
Pool B/C
– Pacific Lutheran
– Tufts
– WPI
– Williams 

BY SOFIA SCEKIC
PHOTO BY ED MORAN

“Late-season speed.” That’s the most common goal moving into the postseason for all rowing teams, from the college level to club teams to juniors. For some teams, though, “late-season speed” means improving on the already-fast times the crews have been rowing this season in hope of winning a championship. But for other teams, particularly ones that have been hit hard by Covid, that means just showing up and giving it your best effort, without a trophy in mind.

Every rowing team has faced unique challenges over the last two years, but the 2021-22 season looked more normal than any season since 2018-19. As most teams wrap up the regular season by mid-May and championship racing is in full swing by the end of May, here is some insight into which teams are leading the polls and how they fared during regular-season competition.

ACRA

American Collegiate Rowing Association (ACRA) teams consist of university and college men’s and women’s rowing teams that are not sponsored by the institution’s athletic department. The University of Michigan, which started the season ranked No. 1, has since fallen to No. 5 in the varsity eights but is still a contender for the national title.

The success of Michigan and other ACRA teams is remarkable, given that those schools lost two years to the pandemic, while most NCAA and IRA teams lost only their 2020 season.

Greg Hartsuff, head coach at Michigan and the founder of ACRA, said early-season meets showed how club teams lagged behind varsity teams after missing twice as much time. At the Head of the Charles, his team and other club teams tend to place much higher than they did this year. Far more varsity teams finished higher in the rankings, he said, probably because they were able to race the spring 2021 season.

“I don’t have a single guy on my team who’s raced a full season in a varsity boat,” Hartsuff said. “The seniors were freshmen last time they had a season and they rowed in that category.”

As a result of missing two years of racing, a unique problem that ACRA schools face is not having a normal sophomore class on the roster. Nearly all club teams were unable to hold recruiting events in fall 2020, so they missed out on rowers in the Class of 2024 who would be interested in continuing to compete in college.

“It’s pretty clear to me the pandemic really hurt the club teams, the ACRA teams, more than it did the varsity teams,” Hartsuff said. “Entries are down across the board across the country, and a lot of it is our sophomore classes. I’ve got only two sophomores [this year].”

But despite Michigan and other ACRA teams facing substantial challenges over the past two years, Hartsuff and his fellow ACRA coaches have been able still to put together successful teams. The Wolverines raced several non-ACRA schools at early spring-season meets, such as the Knecht Cup and recently had numerous standout performances at the Mid-America Collegiate Rowing Association (MACRA) Championships. Although Mercyhurst came away with the victory in the men’s varsity-eight final, Michigan finished fewer than five seconds behind as the first ACRA team. The Wolverines earned victories in the men’s second varsity eight, the men’s freshman/novice four, the men’s freshman/novice eight, and the men’s second freshman/novice eight. Before the ACRA championships on May 21, Hartsuff’s team will compete at the National Invitational Rowing Championships in Worcester, Mass. Usually a competitor at the Dad Vail, Mighigan will not compete at that regatta this year because Hartsuff wants his rowers to use the weekend before the championship to train at home for their ultimate goal: winning ACRA.

No. 1 George Washington University started the season ranked No. 4 but jumped up to the top spot two weeks later and has held it since. The Colonials launched their spring season at the Kerr Cupp in Philadelphia, taking third in the varsity-eight grand final and the second varsity-eight grand final behind two Division I schools — Drexel and Yale. On the first weekend in May, the team competed at the Maxwell Stevenson Cup against non-ACRA schools and took third again in both the varsity eight and second varsity eight. Unlike Michigan, the Colonials will compete at the Dad Vail Regatta the weekend before the ACRA Championship.

In the men’s freshman/novice eights, the University of Virginia is currently leading the polls, followed by Orange Coast College and UCLA in second and third, respectively. Michigan is ranked No. 6, while George Washington received several votes but was not among the top 10. Those rankings have not changed substantially since the first edition of the poll this spring.

On the women’s side of the varsity eight, Purdue is still leading the pack—and the Boilermakers have yet to relinquish their hold on the No. 1 ranking this season. In their first major race of the spring season, the Boilermakers’ varsity eight won the Division II/III/Club Final at the San Diego Crew Classic and followed that with a strong team-wide performance at the Lubbers Cup the following weekend. At the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championship Regatta, the team continued its hot streak with a win in the women’s V8+ B Final and a third-place finish in the women’s Novice 8+ A Final. Despite Dad Vail’s taking place just seven days before the ACRA Championship, Purdue will race at the regatta before taking on the championships. 

No. 2 Grand Valley State has held the spot in the poll just below Purdue for much of the season, and the teams faced off in numerous events at the Lubbers Cup in Grand Rapids, Mich. Purdue took the head-to-head victory in races like the frosh eight, while Grand Valley was able to pick up victories over the Boilermakers in other races, such as the second varsity eight. After a scrimmage against Michigan State, the Lakers competed at the MACRA Championships. Among several top finishes, perhaps the most impressive was a second-place finish in the varsity eight grand final, seven seconds behind Meryhurst but nearly 23 seconds ahead of third-place Northwestern. The second varsity eight also competed in that final and took fourth. The Dad Vail on May 13 and 14 will serve as the Lakers’ tune-up before the ACRA Championships in late May.

Purdue also holds the top spot in the freshman/novice eights after starting the season ranked sixth. Grand Valley began the season in the top spot, fell to seventh after one week, and currently sits at fifth. One surprise in these rankings is Clemson. For the first three weeks, the team was unranked, before jumping up to the top spot in Week 4. Clemson had recently taken second in the lightweight varsity 4+ A final at the SIRA championships, finishing second only to the University of Wisconsin. The Tigers have since fallen slightly and are currently tied for No. 3 with Vanderbilt.

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The list of accepted entries to the 2022 Intercollegiate Rowing Association National Championship has been announced. The event will take place June 3-5 on Mercer Lake in West Windsor, New Jersey.

Here is the list of accepted crews.

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PHOTO BY PETER SPURRIER

65 athletes have been invited to row for a chance at a spot on the USRowing under-23 squad.

The athletes will attend selection camps this summer with the opportunity to be selected through the camps to represent the U.S. at the 2022 World Rowing Under 23 Championships July 25-30 in Varese, Italy.

Men’s camps will be held at Harvard for the sweep camp and Conshohocken Rowing Center for the sculling camp.

Jesse Foglia, Patrick Lapage, and Justin Jones will coach the sweep camp and will select the men’s eight and men’s four that will race in Varese.

Craig Hoffman, James Konopka, Lyons Bradley, and Aaron Preetam will head up the sculling camp that will select the men’s quad that will compete in Italy.

The women’s sculling camp will take place at the Oklahoma City High Performance Center under the direction of Reilly Dampeer, Molly Hamrick, and Marc Oria. That camp will determine the women’s quad that will race at the Under-23 Championships.

The University of Virginia will host the women’s sweep camp with Kevin Sauer, Asiya Mahmud, and Kelsie Chaudoin in charge. The women’s sweep camp will determine the women’s eight and four that will race in Varese.

Selection camps begin between June 17-19 and run through July 10.

These are the athletes that have been selected:

Men’s Sculling Selection Camp
Leo Bessler – Commencement Bay Rowing Club
Matthew Davis – University of Pennsylvania
Tomio Filiaci – University of Pennsylvania
Josh Golbus – Brown University
Harry Hall – University of Washington
Maxwell Kreutzelman – Cornell University
Owen Maier – Williams College
John McNicholas – United States Naval Academy
Isaac Spokes – Dartmouth College
Julian Thomas – Dartmouth College

Women’s Sculling Selection Camp
Lauren Benedict – University of Virginia
Sophia Calabrese – University of Texas
Susan Cook – Boston University
Katelin Gildersleeve – Stanford University
Sue Holderness – University of Texas
Clare Naughton – Yale University
Samantha Schalk – University of Texas
Ellen Ulitsky – University of California, Los Angeles
Simone Vorperian – University of Pennsylvania
Isabel Wilkowski – Brown University

Waitlist
Violet Barletta – Yale University
Catie Castle – University of Rhode Island
Katherine Kelly – University of Virginia
Elizabeth Rowland – George Washington University
Charlotte Wiley – University of Central Florida

Men’s Sweep Selection Camp
Alexander Abuhoff – Northeastern University
Adam Campain – Cornell University
William Dempsey – Northeastern University
Jack DiGiovanni – Brown University
Billy Duffy – United States Naval Academy
Benjamin Dukes – Syracuse University
Charles Fargo – Brown University
Will Geib – United States Naval Academy
Kai Hoite – Brown University
Sammy Houdaigui – Dartmouth College
Jacob Hudgins – Dartmouth College
Miles Hudgins – Dartmouth College
William Legenzowski – Brown University
Pablo Matan – University of Washington
Nathan Phelps – Princeton University
Braden Porterfield – Northeastern University
Travis Senf – Stanford University
Erik Spinka – Princeton University
Zachary Vachal – Princeton University
James Wright – Stanford University

Women’s Sweep Selection Camp
Isabella Battistoni – Stanford University
Etta Carpender – University of Texas
Elena Collier-Hezel – University of Michigan
Azja Czajkowski – Stanford University
Sophie Dixon – Stanford University
Greta Filor – Brown University
Claira Fucetola – Princeton University
Gabrielle Graves – University of Michigan
Victoria Grieder – Rutgers University
Sophia Hahn – Yale University
Margaret Hedeman – Yale University
Hannah Heideveld – Rutgers University
Megan Lee – Duke University
Maddie Moore – Yale University
Kathia Nitsch – University of Texas
Lauren Orr – University of Virginia
Sasha Radovanovic – Southern Methodist University
Rachel Rane – University of Texas
Jeri Rhodes –­ University of Michigan
Caroline Ricksen – Stanford University
Angela Szabo – University of California
Tess Thompson – Ohio State University
Leia Till – University of Virginia
Victoria Van Ingen – University of Virginia
Camille VanderMeer – Princeton University

Waitlist
Katelyn Bartos – Ohio State University
Ingrid Brast – University of Southern California
Kathryn Clemens – Oregon State University
Alena Criss – Syracuse University
Brandi Gueths – University of Wisconsin
Lily Jarrett – University of Virginia
Ellie Lewis – Southern Methodist University
Lauren O’Connor – University of Wisconsin
Lauren Sizemore – Duke University

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The Schuylkill Navy of Philadelphia announced that the Tri-State Toyota Dealers Association will be the Presenting Sponsor of the 2022 Stotesbury Cup Regatta.

It is the eighth year that the association has backed the event.

“The Schuylkill Navy is grateful for the generous support that Toyota has provided over these difficult years. We are so happy to join the Tri-State Toyota Dealers Association in welcoming back the crowds of athletes and fans to our historic river venue,” said Bonnie Mueller, Commodore, Schuylkill Navy. “The breadth of Toyota’s support helps us continue to improve all events at our historic venue as well as providing a significant resource to allow Boathouse Row athletes to compete at a world-class level.”

The event is scheduled to take place May 20-21 on the Schuylkill River.

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Dexter Lake played host to the 2022 Pac-12 Rowing Championship Sunday, May 15.

The venue has been described as the Lucerne of the United States.

“Pac-12’s at Dexter was awesome,” John Tytus, President at Pocock said. “The West Coast needs another course and it’s all there. It just needs momentum and support. It’s a gorgeous lake surrounded by foothills.”

For the University of California men’s rowing program and the Stanford University women’s rowing program, the beauty of Dexter Lake was not a distraction to picking up conference titles.

Cal took the top spot in the men’s category earning a 17th Pac-12 Championship title for the program.

“Really, really good day for all our crews,” said head coach Scott Frandsen. “Proud of how they all raced. Varsity had a great race from start to finish. JV, what a comeback win, that was a gutsy, internal, just awesome race for those guys to come and win in the last five strokes. 3v had a very good race and came up just a little short in the last 500m. We accomplished exactly what we wanted to do. And now the focus very much shifts to the IRA in three weeks.”

The Bears finished the regatta with 72 points—a seven-point margin over runner-up University of Washington.

“The goal was to make progress from earlier races this season and we did that today,” said UW head coach Michael Callahan. “We made gains in all the varsity boats and a number of the races were within a couple second swing either way.”

On the women’s side, The Cardinal won its first conference title since 2014 narrowly edging the University of Washington by a two-and-a-half point margin.

“It’s good to have the whole team back in action,” said UW head coach Yasmin Farooq. “Every day shows positive growth. We knew we’d be tested and that we’d need to step up against excellent competition. Thanks to the other strong Pac-12 teams for pushing us today, and to Stanford, which earned the title. The racing was top notch and the Dexter Lake venue delivered good and fair conditions. We’ve come really far as a team this year and we’re excited to challenge ourselves and sharpen our edges as we prepare for the NCAAs.”

A list of full results can be viewed here.