The University of Rhode Island’s women’s rowing team took first place out of 33 at the Head of the Riverfront in Hartford, Connecticut on Sunday.
In the team’s first event of the fall season, they won the race with a time of 16:44.9, beating out second-place Williams College by a full 20 seconds in the Womens Open 8+ division.
The first-place Rhode Island Rams crew included third-year Lily Stasaitis, third-year Bethany Nordstrom, fourth-year Bella Bruno, third-year Cait Reardon, first-year Nora Lake, fourth-year Hailey Pardi, third-year Emma Barnhart, third-year Abigail Galayda and third-year Emma Larsh.
“Beating the second-place team by 20 seconds, we just came off the water feeling so good,” Pardi, a team captain, said. “It feels great, I think we had a really strong race.”
URI Head Coach Shelagh Donohoe is in her 18th season as the team’s coach. Donohoe is a nine-time Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year.
“There’s no better way to go out in your first race and win it,” Donohoe said. “We have a lot more progress that can be made, so I’m excited about the future.”
In addition to a first-place finish, the Rams’ Second Varsity 8+ boat also finished within the top 10 at the Head of the Riverfront, taking home seventh place.
“Making sure we have the depth throughout our whole team is really important for us,” Pardi said. “Seeing them grow in just the month we’ve been here is really good so I’m excited for them to keep on getting better throughout the season.”
The Second Varsity 8+ consisted of fourth-year Ellie McGee, third-year Jasmyn Hayes, third-year Emma Brookins, second-year Anna Kann, second-year Amanda Cubit, third-year Irma Accius, second-year Brigid McShea, second-year Maia Hembruff and second-year Anna Smith. They beat out eighth-place Fairfield University’s boat by five seconds.
“Without our Second Varsity 8+ or our four, we can’t win our championships,” Pardi said.
The women’s rowing team won an A-10 championship last season, and have set out on the goal to win another championship this spring on May 17, 2025.
“I’m happy where we are, but we still have a lot of growth to be able to do well on May 17,” Donohoe said. “We have a legacy of success, and they want to uphold that and do the best they can.”
Donohoe also expressed how excited the team is for their upcoming regatta.
“We’re gearing up for [the] Head of the Charles [Regatta], which is the largest regatta in the world,” Donohoe said. “That should be fun – we’ll see crews from our conference, and we’ll also see crews from all over this country and some international crews. So it’ll be fun to see where we line up there.”
To Pardi, the importance of the first win of the fall season went far beyond the actual results, as the team looks ahead to their championship season in the spring.
“It’s a confidence boost to see everyone doing better going into the Head of the Charles,” Pardi said.
The team competes again on Sunday, Oct. 20 at the HOCR in Boston. 837 clubs are registered for the regatta. The Rams will be taking on competition within their conference at this event, along with teams from across the country and even some international teams.