October 22, 2006

BOSTON—The William Smith crew competed in the prestigious Head of the Charles Regatta this weekend. The Heron varsity 4+ turned in a fourth place showing, while the varsity 8+ placed 21st.

In a strong showing from the varsity 4+, William Smith was fourth out of 27 teams on Saturday, covering the 3-mile course in 20:53.158. Alexandra Bowers, Kenzie Cannon, Michelle Dodge, Emily Maguire, and Jess Wojslaw were the second Division III boat across the line, following Bucknell, Penn State, and Simmons College.

“The crew faced 20-mile an hour head winds with ease,” Head Coach Sandra Chu said. “By mid-course, many other crews were already showing some effects from the wind but the Herons actually posted a very fast middle mile. This boat showed tremendous speed today—built on top of a strong foundation of extremely high quality work. They took this race to the highest level and showed how deep this team is. They were exemplary representatives of our program.”

Only 0.4 seconds behind Simmons, the Herons were 2.11 percent behind Bucknell’s winning time of 20:27.227, earning the team a guaranteed entry into the race for 2007.

“Bucknell finished 31 seconds ahead of this boat at the Head of the Genesee, just two weeks ago,” Chu said. “The Herons closed the gap by five seconds, which is a solid improvement in a short amount of time. I would have to say that the boat rowed as well as a unit as possible, giving coxswain Kenzie Cannon everything she needed to nail the course.”

Last year, the Herons finished fifth in the varsity 4+ race, 2.34 percent behind the winner.

Racing on Sunday, the varsity 8+ placed 21st out of 57 teams. William Smith posted a time of 18:05.511. The Herons finished ahead of Liberty League rivals Hamilton, Rochester, Vassar, St. Lawrence, Union, and Rensselaer.

William Smith will close out its fall racing season on Oct. 28, when the Herons compete in the Head of the Fish Regatta in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

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