UW Takes Ninth In Championship Eights At Head Of The Charles

Sunday, October 20

Boston, MA

11:15 AM

University of Washington

Head of the Charles

UW Takes Ninth In Championship Eights At Head Of The Charles

October 20, 2019 | Men's Rowing

Full Results

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – A win in the women's championship fours was the highlight for the four Washington men's and women's crews that competed Sunday in the 55th annual Head of the Charles Regatta.

The Huskies had one men's and three women's crews on the Charles River, competing in three events Sunday.

In the men's championship eights, Washington got off to a bit of a slow start and sat in 16th place (out of 30 teams) at the Riverside Boat Club. By the Weld Boathouse, the Huskies had improved to 11th place and at the Cambridge Boat Club, they were in 10th place. Washington moved up another spot in the final portion of the race to finish in ninth, fifth among the college crews in the event.

Two crews made up of U.S. national team members finished in first and second place in the men's championship eights. The winning boat included two UW alumni, Ben Davison' 19 and Chris Carlson '19, who helped their crew beat the other U.S. shell by just .067 seconds. The winners finished in 13:32.283 while the other American crew's time was 13:32.350. Washington finished in 13:57.765, just behind the Dutch national team, which included UW alum Michiel Mantel '19.

"With an start to the season we are about where we expect to be at this point," UW men's coach Michael Callahan said. "We set a strong foundation in the first couple weeks and we have a lot gain going forward. We're excited about what we can accomplish between now and the Head of the Lake."

Washington opened the day in the championship fours, one of 15 entries (all collegiate) in the competition. The Husky four – consisting of coxswain Dana Brooks and rowers Holly Drapp, Mackenna Cameron, Angharad Broughton and Brittani Shappell – had the fourth-fastest time at the first checkpoint (Riverside Boat Club), but sat in second position in the time trial at the second and third milestones.

But the Huskies made up the margin in the final portion of the three-mile race to finish with a time of 17:33.168, about a second-and-a-half ahead of Brown and well clear of the rest of the field.

The win was the first ever by a Husky crew in the Head of the Charles women's championship four, which was first held in 1974. And, while UW women's team alumnae have won at the event as members of national team crews, etc., Sunday's victory was the UW women's first ever at the regatta. The UW women's eight was the top collegiate finisher in the 2017 championship event, but two national team crews finished ahead of the Huskies overall.

The women's championship eights featured 32 entries, including two from the U.S. National Team as well as a couple of British crews and one from the Netherlands.

Washington had two boats in the competition. The crew coxed by senior Marley Avritt and stroked by freshman Brooke Kilmister, finished in 11th place, while the other Husky boat, with coxswain Nina Castagna and stroke McKenna Bryant, finished in 13th. The Husky boats, who both clashed with oars of other crews (not uncommon at this event) finished eighth and 10th among college crews in the race.

Similar to the men's result, the top-two finishers in the women's champ eights were U.S. National Team crews. The winning boat (15:05.842) included veteran international rower and UW alumna Megan Kalmoe '06 in the bow seat while the crew that finished in second (15:06.833) was coxed by former Husky men's team member Katelin (Snyder) Guregian '09, who led the U.S. eight to the gold medal at the 2016 Olympic Games.

Washington's two boats finished with times of 15:51.899 and 15:56.343.

On Saturday, the first day of the two-day regatta, Washington was represented by boats in the men's and women's alumni eight competitions. The men's crew, which included oarsmen who graduated last spring all the way to a 37-year old, finished in second place, behind Michigan, in a field of 51 teams.

In the women's alumni race, Washington took fifth place out of a field of 44 crews.

Men's Lineup

Championship Eight
Cox: Adam Gold (Seattle, Wash./Seattle Academy)
Stroke: Peter Lancashire (Victoria, B.C./Brentwood School)
7: George Esau (Long Lake, Minn./Orono)
6: Samuel Halbert (Redmond, Wash./Woodinville)
5: Steve Rosts (Jordan, Ont./Eden)
4: David Bridges (Portland, Ore./Jesuit)
3: Gert-Jan van Doorn (Leiden, Germany)
2: Nils Vorberg (Hamburg, Germany)
Bow: Chase Deitner (Perth, Australia)