SARASOTA, Fla. – The first day of racing for the Falcons will extend into Friday afternoon at the NCAA Division II Women's Rowing Championships.
 
Seattle Pacific's varsity four crew placed second in its heat race Friday morning and the varsity eight was third. But only the heat winners advanced directly to Saturday's grand finals, so the two SPU crews will hit the water again five hours after they came ashore after morning races at Nathan Benderson Park.
 
Both Falcons crews will compete in four-boat races, with the top-two finishers in each repechage advancing to the grand finals. The other crews compete Saturday in petite finals.
 
A repechage is a second-chance opportunity for heat runners-up to reach the championship race and fill the four-boat field. In its last trip to nationals, at the 2019 NCAA regatta, both SPU crews competed in the grand final and recorded matching fourth-place results.

VIDEO: VARSITY EIGHT HEAT RACE

Varsity Eight
SPU participated in the first race of the regatta for Division II schools, the varsity eight heats.
 
Defending champion Central Oklahoma opened an early lead with Mercyhurst and SPU neck-and-neck. By the midway mark, Mercyhurst had surged in front by a deck over UCO, which had a sliver of open water ahead of the Falcons.
 
Those places held for the remaining 1,000 meters as the finish saw Mercyhurst with nearly a boat-length lead for a winning time of 6-minutes, 37.14-seconds. That clinched a grand final spot to join Heat 2 winner Jefferson, which clocked a comprable time of 6:38.67.
 
Central Oklahoma placed second in the opening heat in 6:40.39, owning a small gap between its stern and the Falcons bow. SPU completed the 2,000-meter course in 6:44.25.
 
The Falcons will race again at 2:24 p.m. Pacific Time (5:24 Eastern) in the repechage alongside UCO and the second heat non-winners Western Washington (6:42.89) and Embry-Riddle (7:13.44).
 
Senior coxswain LeeAnn Arrington directed the Falcons varsity eight boat that was propelled by rowers Jennifer Hoag, Macie Leach, Jacinta Grandel, Natalie Korolenko, Elise Arkills, Kalais Samuelson, Danielle Johnson and Hannah Miller.
 
The heat was the first NCAA regatta race for everybody in the SPU boat except Hoag, who rowed with the varsity four at the 2019 championships.
 
VIDEO: VARSITY FOUR HEAT RACE

Varsity Four
SPU entered a four-oared crew in the national championships for just the third time in school history. It was the maiden NCAA voyage for everybody in the boat.
 
The Falcons four, coxed by Moxie McCandless, proved they belong at the national regatta.
 
Embry-Riddle burst from the starting line and quickly obtained a healthy lead. That margin was already open water after 300 meters and almost three lengths at the midway mark. The winning time was 7:37.27.
 
The other two crews were destined for Friday afternoon's repechage, led impressively by SPU. The Falcons boasted a wealth of open water ahead of Jefferson, finishing second in 7:52.78. Jefferson's was third in 8:11.29.
 
Mercyhurst won the second heat in 7:32.22 to punch its ticket to the grand final.
 
SPU and Jefferson will race against Great Northwest Athletic Conference rivals Central Oklahoma (7:34.87) and Western Washington (8:06.40), the runners-up from the other heat.
 
The varsity four repechage is slated for 2:36 p.m. PDT (5:36 EDT).
 
Rowing in the Falcons four-oared boat were Megan Popielak, Kristin Grassell, Avalon Tarbet-Mendoza and Audrey Rekedal.
 
NCAA WOMEN'S ROWING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Friday, May 27, 2022
Nathan Benderson Park / Sarasota, Fla.
(2,000-meter races)
 
DIVISION II WOMEN'S RESULTS
 
HEAT RACES
(top finisher in each heat advanced to grand final, rest to repechage)
 
Varsity Eights
Heat I -- 1, Mercyhurst, 6:37.14; 2, Central Oklahoma, 6:40.39; 3, Seattle Pacific, 6:44.25.
          SPU lineup: cox-LeeAnn Arrington, stroke-Jennifer Hoag, 7-Macie Leach, 6-Jacinta Grandel, 5-Natalie Korolenko, 4- Elise Arkills, 3-Kalais Samuelson, 2-Danielle Johnson, bow-Hannah Miller.
 
Heat II -- 1, Jefferson, 6:38.67; 2, Western Washington, 6:42.89; 3, Embry-Riddle, 7:13.44.
 
Varsity Fours
Heat I -- 1, Embry-Riddle, 7:37.27; 2, Seattle Pacific, 7:52.78; 3, Jefferson, 8:11.29.
           SPU lineup:  cox–Moxie McCandless, stroke-Megan Popielak, 3-Kristin Grassell, 2-Avalon Tarbet-Mendoza, bow-Audrey Rekedal.

Heat II -- 1, Mercyhurst, 7:32.22; 2, Central Oklahoma, 7:34.87; 3, Western Washington, 8:06.40.
 
 
Friday, May 27 Repechage Schedule
2:24 p.m. PDT – Varsity eights
        Seattle Pacific, Central Oklahoma, Embry-Riddle, Western Washington
 
2:36 p.m. PDT – Varsity fours
        Seattle Pacific, Central Oklahoma, Jefferson, Western Washington