The William Smith rowing finished seventh in the women's team standings at the National Invitational Rowing Championships on Lake Quinsigamond on Sunday. The regatta featured 14 of the 15 crews in the CRCA Poll.
 
With the postseason quickly approaching, the NIRC's serve as a tuneup for the national championship regatta at the end of the month. The Herons' top two boats qualified for the grand finals and the third varsity eight competed in the petit final. Throughout the day, crews experienced an increasing headwind with 19 mph wind gusts occurring in short bursts.
 
FIRST VARSITY EIGHT

• The William Smith 1V was driven by Lizzy Whitney, Linnea Darius, Kate Abdalla, Raya Schwartz, Alessandra Gialanella, Aubrey Ryan, Eden Grim, Leah Wiebe, and Meghan Bartholomay.
• In the morning heat, the Herons, who are ranked eighth in the CRCA Poll competed against No. 2 Bates, No. 5 Smith No. 11 Hamilton, No. 13 Rochester and Mount Holyoke.
• William Smith began its heat with a bang, settling into a quick base which allowed the women to race neck and neck in the first 500 meters with Hamilton and Smith, eventually edging its bow out in front.
• Continuing to push forward, the Herons obtained a half a boat length lead on the crews that were fighting for second place. Approaching the 1000-meter mark, the Bobcats began to develop a more rapid cadence, and pulled away from the Herons. As the crews approached the latter half of the race, William Smith settled into a second-place position, holding off Smith College.
• The Herons crossed the line with a time of 7:19.016, securing a spot in the Grand Final.
• In the afternoon race, the Herons competed against No. 2 Bates, No. 1 Williams, No. 3 Tufts, No. 4 Trinity and No. 7 Wellesley.
• William Smith began its race in the first 500 meters lining up next to Wellesley, taking seats, and moving towards fifth place.
• Within the next 500 meters, the Blue began to move in front of the Herons, but the William Smith continued their aggressive cadence, continuing to establish their presence within the field. The Herons finished with a time of 7:24.956. William Smith finished sixth overall

 
SECOND VARSITY EIGHT

• The Heron's 2V8 was powered by Michaela Greco, Olivia Helms, Lily Liflander, Ella Rhodes, Paige Barnhart, Ainsley Kimball, Nora Smith, Alayna Wian, and Olivia Sainsbury.
• In their morning heat, the Herons took on the Jumbos, Smith, the Yellowjackets, Connecticut College and St. Lawrence.
• Off the start, William Smith's 2V established itself within a solid line of four teams.
• Within the first 200 meters, the Herons stayed within a length of the Tufts crew and attempted to take seats while simultaneously moving away from Smith College.
• The Jumbos began to take open water on the field in the middle half of the race while William Smith continued to battle for second place against Smith and UofR in an even split race.
• As the latter half of the race began, Smith began to advance, but the William Smith called for a sprint with 500 meters left and ultimately held their spot in second with a time of 7:44.360
• In the grand final, the 2V competed Tufts, Trinity, Wesleyan, Bates, and Williams.
• Crossing the 400-meter mark, William Smith rowed at an energetic rate, allowing them to stay in contention with the rest of the field.
• Battling the developing strong headwind, the Herons did not let up and moved with intention, determined to stay within the field. Moving into the last final 500 meters, the Herons still stayed controlled in their strokes and finished with a time of 7:53.304.

 
THIRD VARSITY EIGHT

• The 3V8 was powered by Skylar Strong, Kate Oberg, Mariee Voss, Grace Jung, Isabella Ramirez, Dani Krenzer, Annika Stacia, Lily Keefe, and Vicentica Fuller.
• In their heat, the Herons drew Tufts, Bates, Wellesley, Hamilton, Ithaca and Connecticut College.
• William Smith started its race day strong, lining up with six out of the seven crews off the start.
• Approaching the 400-meter mark,, the Jumbos had established an early lead, followed closely by Bates and William Smith.
• In the middle of the race, the Herons continued to push forward with the three leading crews.
• The Herons closed the gap on third place in the closing stages, finishing fourth with a time of 7:50.978
• In the petit final, the Herons raced against No. 6 Wesleyan, No. 9 Colby College, No. 10 Coast Guard, the Continentals and the Camels.
• Within the first 500 meters Bates established their lead, while William Smith began to give and take seats with the Ithaca and Colby crews for second place. Within the next 200 meters, the Herons moved away from being within a bow ball of Ithaca and focused on Colby, which had moved to a firm second place.
• Crossing the first 1000-meter buoys, the Herons continued to trade seats with the Mules. Facing more rough water at the end of the course, the William Smith continued to hang on, activating their sprint within the last 200 meters and finished second, crossing the line at 8:19.984.

 
UP NEXT
William Smith will be back on the water at the end of the month, May 29-31 when it heads to Gainesville, Georgia for the NCAA Division III Rowing Championships.