SEATTLE – The Seattle Pacific University women's rowing team competed in its only home regatta of the season on Saturday morning when they hosted fellow Great Northwest Athletic Conference members, Western Washington, Cal Poly Humboldt, and the University of Central Oklahoma in races down the L.W. Ship Canal.
"Over the past five years, Falcon Regatta has grown into more than just a race," head coach Caitlin McClain said. "It has become a homecoming and coming together for our broader community of alumni, families, and fans - including SPU students and staff who came even though it is spring break."
Falcon Regatta weekend has become a yearly celebration of the SPU women's rowing community. The Falcons honored seniors Addie Clark, Emma Ely, Mary Goodhew, Audrey Rekedal, and Megan Rouse on Friday evening before Saturday's competition. Family and friends lined the L.W. Ship Canal to cheer on the student-athletes during Saturday's races. The atmosphere was enthusiastic, as supporters celebrated the hard work, camaraderie, and dedication of all teams.
"It is really special to host our team dinner the night before to kick off the races and celebrate our seniors, then to race hard against our region rivals in front of a home crowd, and finally to finish off the day with the alumni challenge," McClain said. "It means a lot after all the logistics and preparation to see everyone cheering on the shore and hanging out around the shell house after. We are so grateful for the support and engagement of the past and present Falcons and their families."
SPU opened the day with a strong performance from the Varsity 4+ boat. The Falcons beat the Lumberjacks and Vikings with a time of 8:11.8. Later in the morning, the Falcons raced Central Oklahoma in the B final. SPU clocked a time of 8:15.9.
"This year's regatta featured all four GNAC teams, which we know from history is a lot of speed and depth," McClain said. "We saw that on the race course and the team handled it well. Our 2 Varsity 4+, also known as the Open 4+, kicked off racing with a win and competitive time. In the NCAA boat classes (Varsity 8+ and 4+), we lost to fast Humboldt crews, but had solid races to build off of for the next flight."
The Falcons Varsity 8+ squared off against the Lumberjacks in the first session of the day. The race was close, but SPU was edged out by the CPH. The Falcons clocked a 7:06.9 trailing the Lumberjacks by six seconds. Later in the morning, the Falcons raced the Bronchos in the B final. The Falcons won the heat at 7:14.2 and were 5.5 seconds faster than the Bronchos.
SPU had three different V4+ boats compete in Saturday's event. The second V4+ shell's best time of the day was 8:12.1. The third V4+ boat's best race happened in the second session when they had a time of 8:42.2.
"In our second matchups we saw Central Oklahoma for both and beat their V8+," McClain said. "With all the activity of the day, we haven't fully debriefed with each boat, so we still have some information gathering to do. However, the above results suggest we need to continue developing in the 8+ and sort out the two fours since they are going at similar speeds. Overall, the team has put in a lot of hard work this past week with spring break and we are looking forward to continuing to get faster."
The Falcons return to the water on April 5, when they travel to Edmond, Okla. to compete at the UCO invite.
LINEUPS
VARSITY 8+
c: Aleksia Haugen, 8: Amelia Pape, 7: Solanes Capps-Mace, 6: Audrey Rekedal, 5: Bella Lisenby, 4: Megan Rouse, 3: Grace Combs, 2: Gem Gatmaytan, 1: Addie Clark
VARSITY 4+
c: Sasha Kolobovnikov, 4: Emmerson Spencer, 3: Emma Jones, 2: Racquel Wesley, 1: Brittan Dalberg
2 VARSITY 4+
c: Lexi Roybal, 4: Elizabeth Chapman, 3: Emma Ely, 2: Norah Bauman, 1: Mia Vittori
3 VARSITY 4+
c: Mary Goodhew, 3: Rachael Termure, 3: Freya Myers-Arnoult, 2: Erica Fisher, 1: Faith Akutagawa
FLIGHT 2 CHANGES
VARSITY 4+
c: Sasha Kolobovnikov, 4: Racquel Wesley, 3: Emma Jones, 2: Emmerson Spencer, 1: Brittan Dalberg
2 VARSITY 4+
c: Lexi Roybal, 4: Norah Bauman, 3: Emma Ely, 2: Elizabeth Chapman, 1: Mia Vittori
3 VARSITY 4+
c: Mary Goodhew, 3: Rachael Termure, 3: Jasmine Crisan, 2: Erica Fisher, 1: Karisma Magana
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