ITHACA, N.Y.—The Hobart rowing team kicked off the spring portion of the schedule on Sunday, March 29, with the Cayuga Dual hosted by Ithaca. The Statesmen won all six races they were entered in.
 
The Statesmen competed against Ithaca, Hamilton and Skidmore on the 2,000-meter Cayuga Inlet course. Conditions were fair, with a cold morning giving way to a mild, sunny afternoon and a slight tailwind throughout the day.
 
VARSITY EIGHT

• In the morning race, Hobart's varsity eight was driven by Sam Hyman, Owen O'Connor, Charles Watroba, Colin Mester, Kiré Richardson, Chase Sneddon, James Feeley IV, Carlo Capitanucci, and Tibor Teleki.
• The men's 1V took off the line and expanded an open water lead within the first 500 meters, and continued to build that gap through the remainder of the race.
• The boat crossed the finish line with a time of 5:54.8, 18 seconds in front of the Bombers.
• With the win, Hobart retained the Statesmen Trophy, which is awarded annually to the winner of the 1V race between Ithaca and Hobart. This is the 15th straight year Hobart has won the trophy.
• In the afternoon, Hobart went head-to-head with the Continentals. The Statesmen jumped off the line, taking a full length within the first 300 meters. The Statesmen found a rhythm earlier than the morning race, allowing them to finish with a time of 5:57.5, nearly 20 seconds ahead of Hamilton.

 
SECOND VARSITY EIGHT

• The Statesmen's second varsity eight was composed of Ellie Dial, Panagiotis Giannakopoulos, Alan Marusic, Trevor Beatley, Álvaro Paulin, Nicholas Short, Henry McComb, Clement Newbold IV, and Estel Justus.
• In the morning race, the 2V8 raced against Ithaca's second varsity eight and Hobart's third varsity eight. The 2V took a length lead over Ithaca in the first 250 meters and at the 2-minute mark of the race had a length lead on the Hobart third varsity eight.
• The second varsity went 6:01.4, finishing four seconds ahead of the Hobart third varsity eight and the Ithaca second varsity by 32 seconds.  
• In the Afternoon, the Hobart second varsity eight leaped off the line in the first 500 meters. The Statesmen mounted a strong sprint towards the finish, ending with a time of 6:08.0, beating Skidmore by 50 seconds.

 
THIRD VARSITY EIGHT
 

• Hobart's 3V8 was driven by Isabel Goldblatt-Hamilton, Jayden Dasher, Cayden Hill, Braden Hendrickson, Cameron Nixon, James Faulkner, Liam Yokanovich, Liam O'Connor, and Fletcher Grantham.
• The Statesmen's third varsity also competed in the three-boat race against Ithaca's second varsity and the Hobart second varsity boat. The 3V8 began the race strong, but their speed tapered off slightly at the 700-meter mark; they held their own against the other Hobart boat.
• Hobart's third eight placed second, 4 seconds behind the Hobart second varsity, but finished 28 seconds in front of Ithaca's boat.

• After a battle with the 2V in the morning, Hobart's 3V went head-to-head with the 4V in the afternoon.  The lineup consisted of Isabel Goldblatt-Hamilton, Jayden Dasher, Cayden Hill, Braden Hendrickson, Cameron Nixon, James Faulkner, Fletcher Grantham, Liam O'Connor, and Sam Peeler.
• In the first 500 meters, the Statesmen's third varsity jumped out in the lead and continued to expand their lead throughout the rest of the 1500 meters.
• The third varsity men finished with a time of 6:12.3, 23 seconds in front of the Statesmen's fourth varsity boat.

 
VARSITY FOUR

• The Hobart varsity four was driven by Duncan Wolski, Will Walker, Thomas Hoffmann, Colin Gilder, and Holden May.
• The Statesmen four got off the start quickly and continued to build their lead against Ithaca for the 2,000-meters and finished the race with a time of 7:14.2, leading the race with a 17-second victory.

 
COACH'S CORNER
"Great execution today by the Statesmen rowing squad in our season opener in Ithaca vs Skidmore, Hamilton and Ithaca," -Head Coach Chris Kerber said. "Our athletes and crews navigated a lion's share of moving parts this weekend with the rescheduling of racing from Saturday to Sunday, multiple lineup changes leading into the race, and a long day of racing Sunday in the bitter cold, especially at the start of the day in Ithaca. The Statesmen were not going to be denied – Our top three varsity crews all delivered 'weekend's best times' on Cayuga and the 1st Varsity delivered the second-best time ever recorded (2019) at the Cayuga Duals. This year, clocking in at 5:54, just 3 seconds off that benchmark. Hat tip to the IC Communications/drone team, whose professional coverage of racing was great. We all appreciated and received the parents' group 'elite' hospitality - Thank you!"
 
UP NEXT
Hobart will be back in action on April 4, when they head to Princeton, New Jersey, to take on Dartmouth and Georgetown. Racing is scheduled to begin at noon.