CHERRY HILL, N.J. – The No. 2 Boston University lightweight rowing program advanced all eight of its Saturday entries to their respective finals on the first day of the Knecht Cup on Saturday (April 15) at Cooper River Park.
Competing against both lightweight and openweight crews across the Eastern seaboard, BU's top boats in each event recorded at least a top-two time. All four of the double sculls as well as the Second Varsity 4 reached the final, while the Varsity 8, Varsity 4, and Novice 4 all placed in the Grand Finals that take place on Sunday (April 16).
The day started with the Double, where four of the top-five times were Terrier crews. BU's "A" boat of
Caroline Burchette and
Savanna Jacovini clocked in at 8:00.28, second only to Harvard-Radcliffe in the three heats and the fastest among the BU contingent.
In the third heat of the V4, BU's boat, coxed by
Rayna Kuthiala and stroked by
Kieran Purandare, posted the second-quickest time among all crews in 7:37.66. That boat moved to the Grand Final along with Lafayette, who won the heat in 7:33.80.
The Terriers' 2V4, coxed by
Mayela Gaol and stroked by Jacovini, overcame Delaware's top boat to place second in the first heat with a time of 8:08.86. Though that performance was two seconds shy of Duquesne in first, it guided the Terriers to Sunday's Grand Final.
Competing in its first Knecht Cup race, the Novice 4, coxed by
Mayberry Mark and stroked by
Cady Messimer, wrapped up the final heat in the category with a time of 8:05.79 to earn a spot in the Grand Final. Monmouth's "A" crew snagged first in 7:58.65.
After winning the third heat in just under four seconds, the Terriers' Varsity 8 entry, coxed by
Heather Shinn and stroked by
Delaney Bernier, shaved nearly 14 seconds off that effort in the first semifinal, finishing in 6:42.91 to advance to the Grand Final with the second-quickest time among all openweight and lightweight boats. Delware held the fastest performance with a time of 6:40.05 in the third semifinal.
Sunday's racing begins at 7:54 a.m. for the Terriers with the double sculls. In addition to the crews from Saturday's events, BU will also roll out its Lightweight 4 and Lightweight 8 lineups. A live stream for the action will air on the Knecht Cup's official YouTube channel, using the link above.
RESULTS
Women's Double
Heat 1
- Harvard-Radcliffe – 7:52.15*
- BU "A" – 8:00.28*
- Gordon – 8:26.72*
- MIT "B" – 8:41.66
- Bryn Mawr "B" – 9:31.21
- Thomas Jefferson – 9:55.27
Heat 2
- BU "C" – 8:09.78*
- MIT "C" – 8:46.82
- UNH "A" – 8:55.44
- Bryn Mawr "A" – 9:03.59
- Brandeis – 10:45.18
Heat 3
- BU "B" – 8:02.68*
- BU "D" – 8:10.12*
- MIT "A" – 8:52.19
- UNH "B" – 9:43.88
- NY Maritime – 9:45.70
* Advance to Final
Varsity 4
Heat 3
- Lafayette – 7:33.80*
- BU Lightweight – 7:37.66*
- Merrimack – 8:18.01
- La Salle – 8:22.49
- MIT – 8:26.48
- St. Joseph's – 8:31.23
* Advance to Grand Final
Second Varsity 4
Heat 1
- Duquesne – 8:06.82*
- BU – 8:08.86*
- Delaware "A" – 8:10.45
- Fordham "B" – 8:41.59
- MIT "B" – 8:59.21
* Advance to Final
Frosh/Novice 4
Heat 4
- Monmouth "A" – 7:58.65*
- BU – 8:05.79*
- Delaware – 8:24.82
- UConn – 8:44.29
- Catholic – 8:53.43
* Advance to Grand Final
Varsity 8
Heat 3
- BU – 6:56.16
- MIT "A" – 6:59.96
- Fordham – 7:03.59
- Saint Joseph's – 7:09.45
- Stetson – 7:14.89
- Iona – 7:38.13
Semifinal 1
- BU – 6:42.91*
- Harvard-Radcliffe – 6:47.78*
- Villanova – 6:59.71
- La Salle – 7:01.78
- UConn – 7:04.55
- Iona – 7:27.24
* Advance to Grand Final
LINEUPS
2x
A:
Stroke:
Caroline Burchette
Bow:
Savanna Jacovini
B:
Stroke:
Alanna Hoffman
Bow:
Kylie Lough
C:
Stroke:
Zoe Meurer
Bow:
Carly Milosevic
D:
Stroke:
Alexandra DeShaw
Bow:
Elizabeth Falo-Yohn
Varsity 4+
Cox:
Rayna Kuthiala
Stroke
Kieran Purandare
3:
Ava Gamble
2:
Nina Palmer
Bow:
Perrin Lafky
2V4+
Cox:
Mayela Gaol
Stroke:
Savanna Jacovini
3:
Alanna Hoffman
2:
Caroline Burchette
Bow:
Kylie Lough
Novice 4+
Cox:
Mayberry Mark
Stroke:
Cady Messimer
3:
Catherine Clark
2:
Isabella Turolla
Bow:
Sarah Spanek
V8
Cox:
Heather Shinn
Stroke
Delaney Bernier
7:
Maecy Rickman
6:
Zoey Goodness
5:
Lilly McSweeney
4:
Natalie Erb
3:
Ela Ersan
2:
Lulu Smith
Bow:
Charlotte Duan
SUNDAY (APRIL 16) RACE SCHEDULE
- Doubles Final – 7:54 a.m.
- Lightweight 4 – 8:10 a.m.
- Novice 4 Grand Final – 8:34 a.m.
- Second Varsity 4 Final – 8:58 a.m.
- Varsity 4 Grand Final – 9:14 a.m.
- Lightweight 8 – 10:26 a.m.
- Varsity 8 – 12:26 p.m.
