Results

GENEVA, N.Y.—The William Smith College rowing team opened its fall racing season by hosting the HWS Challenge on the Canal. The Herons won the novice eight and varsity four races and finished second in the varsity eight and second varsity eight event.
 
Though racing was delayed this morning due to foggy conditions on the Cayuga-Seneca Canal, once races began, the Herons battled mightily to defend their home course. In the first event of the day, both the varsity eight and the second varsity eight finished second behind league rival Rochester. The William Smith 1V covered the 4-kilometer course in 17:14, seventeen seconds behind the Yellowjackets. The 2V race was much closer with UR crossing the line in 18:11, seven seconds ahead of the Herons.
 
"The 1V has been coming along these past weeks and I think they've shown some good speed," Heron Head Coach Sandra Chu said. "I do think we have more speed to show and we definitely have some technical issues to work out. The 2V is young and is growing and changing rapidly. At the same time, Rochester rowed great races. We did not capitalize on rowing at the front of the pack and were challenged by that position, but we're excited and energized by the work we have in the days ahead and the opportunities we have in the coming weeks."
 
In the novice eights race, William Smith placed first and third. The Herons' top novice crew of Hannah Glenshaw, Nina Prescott, Molly Hopkins, Rachel Rosenberg, Sammie Kearney, Karoline Loretan, Samantha Fresh, Margaret Cameron, and Amber Smith came down the course in 19:44, 13 seconds faster than Ithaca. The Heron B entry stopped the clock at 21:16, well in front of Rochester A (21:53) and St. John Fisher A (22:41).
 
"I've been very excited by the novice program," Chu said. "As a group, they show themselves to be highly coachable, very athletically mature and highly competitive. They're a very fun and rewarding group to coach. Today, I was impressed by their overall composure. They were patient down the course, and were able to focus on their fundamentals for maximum run on the drive."
 
The day's racing ended for the Herons with the varsity fours. The 1V4 of senior Katie Lehmann, senior Lauren Blake-Whitney, senior Sinead Reilly, senior Katie Paige, and sophomore Grace Hutton—all four oarswomen competed in the varsity eight race as well—was determined not to repeat the morning's mistakes. They powered over the line first in 19:20, 20 seconds ahead of Rochester. The Heron 2V4  was fifth out of six crews.
 
"One of the strengths of the squad is its ability to continually work on changes and improvements," Chu said. "Both of our fours were very determined to show improvements from the morning race. I liked that I could see those changes from the shore—more aggressiveness, a better commitment to fundamentals, and more consistency through the entire race."
 
The Herons also welcomed back an alumnae eight-- Amy Baldwin '94, Amy Paige Smack '96, Jess Caird '97, Silke Bruner Susanin '95, Kate Bones '94, Jill Woodruff Chan '96, Michelle Sanders, Emily Shelden '13, and Leila Peraro '13—which, in its time trial proved to be as fast as the 2V8s.
 
Following racing, William Smith dedicated a new shell. Named the Salaminia, it was named to honor the passion and commitment of Ford Weiskittel to the Colleges' rowing programs. In ancient Greece, the Salaminia was one of two State Triremes, a sacred vessel staffed year-round, that played a key role in defending the Greek City States in the Battle of Salamis.
 
William Smith will return to racing on Saturday, Oct. 5, when they compete in the Head of the Genesee in Rochester.