NSU WINS NCAA ROWING CHAMPIONSHIP!
The No. 2 Nova Southeastern rowing team captured the program’s first NCAA Division II National Championship Sunday at Eagle Creek Park in Indianapolis, winning both the Varsity 8 and Varsity 4 Grand Finals.
Nova Southeastern won the title with 20 points. Barry finished with 15 points. Western Washington was third with 10, and Mercyhurst fourth with five. It marks the first time since 2004 that an East Coast school won the national championship.
“This is a product of the belief this team had in itself all year,” head coach Stephen Frazier-Wong said. “They said this was their goal from the beginning. They had some challenges earlier this year, but they worked hard to get here. This is a testament to the hard work of the student-athletes and assistant coaches Rachel Sanders and Samantha Sarff, who went above and beyond this season. I also want to thank the athletic department and the rest of the university, whose support was tremendous in my first season here.”
This is the sixth national championship for NSU athletics, all of which have come in a five-year span. For the rowing program, it’s not only the Sharks’ first NCAA DII National Championship, but the first for any school in the Sunshine State Conference and the South Region. The South Region dominated the championship, as No. 1 Barry claimed second in both the Four and Eight boat finals on Sunday.
The Sharks entered the weekend ranked second in the national rankings, and Barry was the early favorite to win it all. During the regular season, the Sharks could only get within two seconds of Barry’s Eight crew, which won the Sunshine State Conference Championship. However, the Sharks persevered and defeated Barry for the first time this season in the Varsity 8 on the sport’s grandest stage, a testament to 10 months of hard work.
“This championship was also for former coaches John Gartin and Mary Lenington,” said Frazier-Wong. “Without their hard work in previous seasons we would have never made it to this level.”
The Varsity 8 won its race in a time of 6:42.75, defeating Barry by just over five seconds. The race was closer than the time implies, as the Sharks and Bucs traded the lead multiple times through the first three quarters of the race. However, the Sharks pulled ahead down the stretch and built a boat-length lead before crossing the finish line. Western Washington and California-San Diego were both 12 seconds behind NSU and never threatened the top two teams.
The NSU Eight was comprised of coxswain Amanda Hudon, Lauren Boudreau, Tori Torrisi, Stephanie Hauck, Amanda Craig, Taylor Van Horn, Kelly Scott, Sarah Patterson, and Camille Evans.
Rowing in the Barry Eight were cox Gracie Horwitz, Kristina Boncheva, Anna Boada, Rosie Boncheva, Monika Kaminska, Beth Desmond, Anais Foppoli, Emma Howard, and Kelly Harrison.
For the second time in program history, the NSU Varsity 4 won the Grand Final. The boat set the tone for the rest of the day, winning with a time of 7:43.85. The Sharks beat Barry’s four for the second time this weekend, this time by just over seven seconds.
Western Washington, a former dynasty in DII rowing, was defeated by the Sharks by 10 seconds. The win gave NSU eight points before the Varsity 8 race and made the Sharks’ championship a possibility.
The Shark Four was made up of coxswain Courtney Berger, Megan O'Donnell, Caitlin Mooney, Emily Harrington, and Amber Morrell.
Competing in the Barry Four were coxswain Angela Dasch, Kasia Walentynowicz, Mandy Carper, Helene Pierre, and Rebekah Kilroy.