Wellesley Crew Takes Fifth Place at 2010 national Championships
Backed by strong performances from both the varsity and second varsity boats, the Wellesley College crew team took fifth place as a team at the 2010 NCAA Division III Rowing National Championships.
Wellesley crew swept both of its final races on Saturday, as the first varsity eight won the petite final and the second varsity eight finished atop the third level final. In the team standings, Wellesley finished with 11 points, behind Williams (26), Bates (19), Trinity (15) and Ithaca (15).
In Saturday's petite final, the Blue varsity eight swept through the field to place first, earning the boat a seventh place finish. After 500 meters, Wellesley was neck-in-neck with St. Lawrence University, who held a slight lead. At the halfway point, the Blue pulled even and then away from St. Lawrence, eventually crusing to an open-water victory. Wellesley's time of 6:56.61, was the fastest 2K time for the time in a competition this season, and was the sixth fastest time of any boat in the finals.
In the third level final, Wellesley took an early lead and never looked back, winning the race in a time of 7:09.35. St. Lawrence threatened at the halfway point, but the Blue stayed in control the entire race and finished first, ahead of St. Lawrence, Puget Sound and Mary Washinton. The first place finish in the third level final, ranked Wellesley's second varsity boat 13th overall on the afternoon.
Racing started on Friday as the Blue varsity eight used a third place finish in the opening heat to advance to the grand qualifier. Wellesley then took fifth place to earn a spot in the petite final. In second varsity action, the Blue took fourth place in their Friday heat race, advancing to the petite qualifier. With another fourth place finish, the boat qualified to the third level final.
The first varsity boat was coxed by junior Hannah Woodruff (Londmeadow, MA) and was comprised of senior Kate Spelman (Scituate, MA), first-year Taylor Black (Harleysville, PA), senior Hannah Dornbusch (Madison, WI), junior Alena Gerlek (Anchorage, AK), first-year Caroline Dodge (Hanover, NH), junior Holly Jones (Duxbury, MA), junior Casey Sedlack (Eagle, ID), and first-year Patty Suquilanda (Greenwich, CT).
The second varsity was coxed by senior Gabriella Wakeman (Saratoga Springs, NY), and was made up of sophomore Shernaz Dossabhoy (Belmont, MA), first-year Kathryn Goffin (Falmouth, ME), junior Clara Wilder (Houston, TX), first-year Jessica Frey (Andover, MA), first-year Rachel Coogan (Somerset MA), first-year Ali Pierson (Baltimore, MD), first-year Jennifer Lamy (Chester, NH) and first-year Tess Ruderman (Brookline, MA).
2010 NCAA Division III Rowing Championships
Sacrament, California
Team Scores
1. Williams - 26
2. Bates - 19
3. Trinity - 15
4. Ithaca - 15
5. Wellesley - 11
6. Puget Sound - 10
7. St. Lawrence - 9
William Smith - NTS
Mary Washington - NTS