The University of Rhode Island women’s rowing team traveled to Princeton, New Jersey, to participate in the Princeton Three-Mile Chase, going toe-to-toe with top teams in the Atlantic 10 Conference and teams in the top 10 of the NCAA.
Rhode Island raced three boats throughout the event. The highest performing of the three finished in 19th place with a time of 15:02.092. The other two boats had placements of 39th and 50th, with times of 15:48.371 and 16:26.287, respectively.
For URI Head Coach Shelagh Donohoe, the event was a success.
“It’s invite only; you’re with a lot of the top programs in the country,” Donohoe said. “I feel like we really focused in on the team, and I feel like all three boats did a great job out there.”
The athletes received a chance to compete with other top athletes from top rowing schools in the NCAA, such as Princeton University and Dartmouth College. Not only did the team face top NCAA programs, but also top schools in the A-10, such as George Washington University and Fordham University. Fourth-year Bethany Nordstrom stated the importance of such an event.
“The top 10 teams are there, and we got to see all of them,” Nordstrom said. “I think it’s just a really, really incredible experience for our team to go to.”
For Donohoe, the importance was similar, facing teams showcasing their best abilities.
“I feel like we’ve seen most of these schools before, because we have gone to [the NCAA Championship] over the last few years,” Donohoe said. “One thing you can bet is there’s a lot of fast programs. There’s no doubt about that. I feel like it’s always good to race schools that are really fast. It really tells you where you are, and it gives us an opportunity to take what we’ve been working on in practice and be able to apply that in a race situation.”
Facing these teams gave the team a sense of where they are as they prepare for the spring season, according to Nordstrom.
“I think it puts our heads in a place where we know there’s another level we can elevate to,” Nordstrom said. “We want to go to NCAAs. We can see where we need to be to do so and perform.”
Following this event, Donohoe said that the team is evaluating where it stands among the competition, setting their focus on the future.
“One thing I can tell you is we have good depth this year,” Donohoe said. “What I’d like to see is the top 20 athletes on the team be closer together as they’re training. They’re working on their numbers on the rowing machine. We’re in the weight room. Every aspect of our training is to get that top 20 to be closer together. It is definitely a goal of ours.”
From the rowers’ perspective, the focus is very similar, according to Nordstrom.
“I think definitely discipline as a whole team, unity and togetherness,” Nordstrom said. “We’re all trying to elevate each other and really get the team more together.”
The Princeton Three-Mile Chase was the last event for the URI rowing team this fall. The team will continue to train and will be back in action in the spring.
