VANCOUVER, Wash. – The Seattle Pacific University women's rowing team traveled south for the Pioneer/Pilot Invitational on Saturday, where the Falcons put together strong performances before the second half of the event was cancelled due to rough conditions.
The Falcons were eager to get back to competition after a week off. They lined up against familiar foes in Western Washington and Cal Poly Humboldt. The Vikings and Lumberjacks are Great Northwest Athletic Conference opponents. Unfortunately, the weather took races away from every team, as the event ended early with cancellations of the second flight of races.
"Conditions were rough, particularly at the start, but every boat found their rhythm and executed solid races," head coach Caitlin McClain said. "It was valuable to race Western and Humboldt again, and of course, Embry Riddle from the south."
The Falcons opened the day with a win in the Open 4+. Lexi Roybal, Racquel Wesley, Addie Clark, Mary Goodhew, and Hannah Miller posted a 9:15.6. They led the race from start to finish, taking down the University of Portland and Lewis & Clark.
In the Varsity 4+, the Falcons took on the Vikings and Lumberjacks. SPU clocked a 2:12 at the 500-meter mark and finished with a time of 8:48. The time was good enough for a third-place finish in the race. WWU posted an 8:41.3 and finished second, while CPH went 8:59.6 and finished fourth.
SPU raced in the second heat of Varsity 8+. At the 500-meter mark, SPU, UP, and CPH were separated by less than three seconds. The Lumberjacks went on to win the heat by .7 seconds over the Pilots. The Falcons took third with an 8:01.2.
"Today was a great outing for us," head coach Caitlin McClain said. "All three boats with progressions (V4+, V8+, JV8+) would have made the A finals if racing had not been cancelled, and the Open 4+ had a big win."
The Falcons travel across the country to compete at the Knecht Cup in Cherry Hill, NJ, on April 13 and 14.
LINEUPS
OPEN 4+
C: Lexi Roybal 4: Racquel Wesley 3: Addie Clark 2: Mary Goodhew 1: Hannah Miller
VARSITY 4+
C: Aleksia Haugen 4: Emmerson Spencer 3: Anna Boatman 2: Emma Jones 1: Amelia Pape
VARSITY 8+
C: Lucy Sandahl 8: Natalie Korolenko 7: Megan Popielak 6: Ixchel Watson 5: Audrey Rekedal 4: Bella Lisenby 3: Megan Rouse 2: Emma Ely 1: Gem Gatmaytan
JV 8+
C: Lexi Roybal 8: Jadyn Hawley 7: Brittan Dalberg 6: Cookie Yitbarek 5: Grace Combs 4: Mari Ceesay 3: Mia Vittori 2: Jenna Casem 1: Faith Akutagawa
SPU SOCIAL
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