Rowing Wins Open 2- at Head of the Hooch
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — The University of Miami rowing team closed its stay at the Head of the Hooch with a championship on Sunday.
The Hurricanes had six boats in the water on the final day of the two-day Head of the Hooch, four in the Women’s Open 2- event and two in the Women’s Open 8+ event.
The pairs were the first Miami boats in action and it was a pair of seniors from New Zealand that posted the top time among 21 entries. Sarah Aschebrock and Caitlin Lowe won the Women’s Open 2- with a time of 18:48.1. Ally Whitty and Taegan Lynch placed sixth with a time of 19:32.8, Alex Gunner and Gigi Williamson finished 11th with a time of 20:21.1 and Catherine Tayler and Caitlin White-Parsons finished 13th with a time of 20:32.9.
Miami also had two boats finish in the Top 20 in the Women’s Open 8+ event. The “A” boat coxed by Lily Wittle followed by Taylor Richard, Alyssa Basdavanos, Caroline Shaw, Jane Moore, Bridget Boland, Elise Wiley, Alexa Aguilar and Alex Ware finished 13th with a time of 17:16.9. Miami’s “B” boat finished 20th with a time of 18:56.0.
“They wrapped up a successful weekend with a 13th and 20th in the open eight,” Miami head coach Dave Sanderson said. “The 2V improved on some things from yesterday and the freshmen raced well in a mostly varsity event. Our pairs did a great job racing hard and focusing on our fundamentals and Sarah and Caitlin came away with the win. Overall, it was a great weekend of racing from the team. I’m proud of them and look forward to developing more speed for the spring.”
The Hurricanes got off to a strong start on Saturday, taking third place and 16th place in the Women’s Championship 8+ race. Miami’s “A” boat coxed by Kate Edmondson, stroked by Caitlin White-Parsons followed by Caitlin Lowe, Sarah Aschebrock, Ally Whitty, Taegan Lynch, Gigi Williamson, Alex Gunner and Catherine Tayler earned a third place finish with a time of 16:28.0. Miami’s “B” boat crossed the finish line in 17:37.9 to place 16th out of 22 boats.
Miami’s Novice 8+ boat coxed by Jackie Lippincott and featuring Avery Borovetz, Lauren Wilson, Katie Robinson, Kyia Herlth, Violet Sullivan, Kia Friel, Carol Reid and Ellen Hinshaw had a solid debut as Hurricanes, placing ninth in a field of 45. The novice boat posted a solid time of 19:00.9 in their first row as Canes.
The Canes’ final race of the day was also one of their most exciting, placing second and 11th in the Women’s Championship 4+ event. The “A” boat coxed by Edmondson, stroked by Whitty and followed by Lynch, Lowe and Aschebrock finished second with a time of 17:41.0, while the “B” boat coxed by Lily Wittle, stroked by Tayler followed by White-Parsons, Williamson and Gunner posted a time of 18:17.7.
The Head of the Hooch is one of the world’s largest rowing regattas, with 2,000+ boats racing over two days. More than 9,000 seats are rowed. 1,200 boats compete on Saturday alone, more in one day than any other regatta. Participants come from over 200 different organizations and in 2012 the regatta welcomed crews from 27 different states. The Head of the Hooch has seen a growth in entries from other countries. The regatta has hosted teams from Canada, Germany, Sweden and Australia.
More information on the Head of the Hooch is available at the regatta’s official website.
The Canes competed at the Head of the Indian Creek and Head of the Charles heading into this weekend’s Head of the Hooch. Miami will return to competitive racing in the spring championship season beginning in 2016.
Miami Lineups
Saturday
Championship 8+ A: Kate Edmondson (cox), Caitlin White-Parsons, Caitlin Lowe, Sarah Aschebrock, Ally Whitty, Taegan Lynch, Gigi Williamson, Alex Gunner, Catherine Tayler
Championship 8+ B: Nicole Rotkovitz (cox), Taylor Richard, Alyssa Basdavanos, Caroline Shaw, Jane Moore, Bridget Boland, Elise Wiley, Alexa Aguilar, Kristen Bufkin
Novice 8+: Jackie Lippincott (cox), Avery Borovetz, Lauren Wilson, Katie Robinson, Kyia Herlth, Violet Sullivan, Kia Friel, Carol Reid, Ellen Hinshaw
Championship 4+ A: Kate Edmondson (cox), Ally Whitty, Taegan Lynch, Caitlin Lowe, Sarah Aschebrock
Championship 4+ B: Lily Wittle (cox), Catherine Tayler, Caitlin White-Parsons, Gigi Williamson, Alex Gunner
Sunday
Open 8+ A: Lily Wittle (cox), Taylor Richard, Alyssa Basdavanos, Caroline Shaw, Jane Moore, Bridget Boland, Elise Wiley, Alexa Aguilar, Alex Ware
Open 8+ B: Jackie Lippincott (cox), Avery Borovetz, Lauren Wilson, Katie Robinson, Kyia Herlth, Violet Sullivan, Kia Friel, Carol Reid, Ellen Hinshaw
Open 2-
A: Ally Whitty, Taegan Lynch
B: Caitlin Lowe, Sarah Aschebrock
C: Caitlin White-Parsons, Catherine Tayler
D: Gigi Williamson, Alex Gunner
For official updates and information please visit our website at HurricaneSports.com or “Like” us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/canesrowing. You can also “Follow” Miami rowing on Twitter at http://twitter.com/canesrowing. The program is also on Instagram.
