Sports
Women’s crew earns first NCAA bid ever
By Sirianna Santacrose ’15
May 15, 2015
Women’s crew has made its mark on Division III sports this year, culminating in the announcement of its first NCAA bid in program history last Monday. The team’s two Varsity 8 boats will travel to California at the end of this month to compete against top NCAA-returners Trinity, Williams and Bates, among others. The women’s team is currently ranked first in New York State and No. 4 in the U.S. Rowing/Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association Division III Top 15 poll, which is its highest ranking to date.
On May 10, Hamilton’s Varsity 8 came in fourth overall at the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) National Invitational Rowing Championships, which were held on Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, MA. The varsity boats upset Ithaca in both heats, which was a welcome result after losing to the team in previous weeks. Notably, the 4+ boat won its Petite Final, as well. This success followed the team’s outstanding showing the previous weekend at the New York State Collegiate Rowing Championships, when it brought home the gold medal for the first time in Hamilton crew history.
For Head Coach Robert Weber, one of this season’s highlights was back in March, when the Varsity 8 boat beat Bates, ranked No. 2 at the time, in the Memorial Murphy Cup Regatta. “This was a huge boost to their confidence levels, which just kept growing and culminated in winning the program’s first-ever New York State Collegiate Championship title,” he said. Earlier in the season, the Continentals also won regattas against Skidmore, William Smith, RIT, Union, St. Lawrence and Ithaca, amongst others.
On May 29 and 30, the women’s crew team will compete against top-ranked teams like Williams at the Sacramento State Aquatic Center in Gold River, CA. Williams won the NCAA DIII Championship every year from 2006-2013, upset only by Trinity last year. Although the Continentals did not beat Williams at the ECAC Championships, they did give the Ephs a run for their money and the rowers hope this will keep them on their toes during NCAAs. As Coach Weber described, “The biggest change I’ve seen this season is that they aren’t intimidated by anyone. The V8 has beaten Bates, went toe-to-toe with Trinity back in April and gave Williams all they could handle in the heat at ECAC.”
In preparation for the NCAA championships in two weeks, the team will continue to train and to focus on fitness and technique in order to improve its boatspeed. “We have been in a unique position all season because we are such underdogs,” said senior captain Karly Moore. She added, “It will take a lot of mental toughness to bring home a medal, but we will use the next few weeks to train and get faster.” Coach Weber similarly said, “We’re physically and physiologically capable of competing as medal contenders in California but need to make some gains in mental toughness.”
Coach Weber, who is in his first year as head crew coach at Hamilton, is extremely pleased with the team’s progress this year. “I couldn’t be more proud of this group of student-athletes. I feel like they are fulfilling their potential,” he said. Moore praised Weber for his dedication to ensuring the team’s success, adding, “He came in at an exciting time in our program and pushed us to be better athletes.” Similarly, captain Rachel Landman ’15 said, “Coach Weber did a great job at keeping us focused on the short term goals that we needed to accomplish before qualifying for NCAAs.”
Based on its impressive successes already this year and its current rankings, women’s crew is poised to make a memorable showing at this year’s NCAA DIII Championship.