Results

BOSTON—The William Smith rowing team's varsity eight finished fifth out of 29 crews in the women's collegiate eight event in the Head of the Charles today. It's the Herons best finish in the event and marks their fifth straight top 10 finish.

William Smith traversed the 5,000-meter Charles River course in 17:34.92. The Herons topped New York rivals St. Lawrence (14th), Ithaca (15th), Hamilton (19th), and Army (21st). Defending national champion Williams won in 16:57.5.

William Smith's entry was powered by Kim Goral, Lauren Blake-Whitney, Sinead Reilly, Christine Reighley, Maggie Smith, Katie Paige, Tess Wiggins, Alyssa Trebilcock, and Elizabeth Hughes.

"We're pleased and proud of the team for the way they've taken their racing to the next level," Head Coach Sandra Chu said. "Over the past week, they've shown a pure intensity at practice that has impressed us and surprised us on some days in their ability to focus in. Today they took that to the highest level we've seen this season."

William Smith also had an entry in the women's alumni eights on Saturday. The former Herons placed 24th out of 30 with a time of 20:04.71. Chu also competed on Saturday, serving as the coxswain for the Carnegie Lake Rowing Association entry in the women's senior master eights, finishing 24th out of 29.

The Herons will close out the fall portion of its racing schedule on Saturday, Oct. 29, when they compete in the Head of the Fish.