Hawkeyes Advance All Boats into the Grand Final

SARASOTA, FLA. – The University of Iowa rowing team advanced all boats into the grand final on Saturday in the Sarasota 2K at Nathan Benderson Park.

The Hawkeyes competed in the 1V8, 2V8, 3V8, 1V4 and 2V4 in heats of 2000-meter sprints. The field consisted of No. 14 UCF, No. 15 Dartmouth, No. 18 Miami, No. 20 UNC, Albany, Boston College, Drexel, High Point University, Iowa, Jacksonville University, Kansas, Kansas State, Louisville, Michigan State, Old Dominion University, SMU, Tulsa, UMass, West Virginia.

All of Iowa’s boats placed second in their heats behind defending Benderson Cup winners, UCF.

The Hawkeyes return to action Saturday morning at 7:20 a.m. (CT) for the 2V4 Grand Final. Fans can watch live on RHSTV or follow along live on CrewTimer.

HEAR FROM HEAD COACH JEFF GARBUTT
“Our women really stepped up today, going five for five in the finals. Varsity eight made it a little more interesting coming down the home stretch but they stayed with the race plan and gritted it out till the end. I am super proud of our first years in the third eight, who showed a lot of poise and resilience. I thought all our boats did a great job rowing until the last stroke and not getting rattled by outside factors but stayed within the boat. Coach Allen at UCF has done an amazing job during her time in Orlando, and we have seen progress in our boats from when we raced a month ago to today. Our athletes are going to compete against some top competition tomorrow which will help them grow and learn about what it takes to compete at that level. Go Hawks!”

RESULTS
Michigan State and UCF took a slight lead over the field in the first 500-meters with Iowa staying connected to both. At the 1000-meter mark, Iowa lost connection to the leader but the Hawkeyes continued to put pressure on the second and third positions. Iowa began their push in the final 500-meters to take back a couple seats on Michigan State. The Hawkeyes laid everything on the line to edge out a second-place finish and earn a spot in the grand final.

Varsity Eight
1 UCF (6:28.29)
2 Iowa (6:40.54)
3 Michigan State (6:40.72)
4 UMass (6:41.72)
5 Jacksonville (6:49.58)
6 UAlbany (6:57.76)
7 West Virginia (7:06.13)
Iowa: Carissa Cochico (cox), Sophia Foreman, Ella Grove, Poppy Brooke-Turner, Beatrix Hearn, Leah Nawrot, Andy Mills, Scarlett Maleham, Mia Lawrence

Iowa got out to a strong start, pulling ahead in the opening start sequence. At the 500-meter mark, UCF found their lead with Iowa down only a couple seats. At the halfway mark, UCF took an open water lead over the Hawkeyes while the Hawkeyes had an open water lead over the rest of the field. In the last 250-meters, Iowa made their final push to secure a second-place finish and advance to the grand final.

II Varsity Eight
1 UCF (6:37.83)
2 Iowa (6:49.80)
3 UMass (6:58.62)
4 MSU (7:01.13)
5 Jacksonville (7:01.14)
6 West Virginia (7:15.04)
7 UAlbany (7:21.48)
Iowa: Taylor Arbuckle (cox), Katie Proudlove, Catherine Finerty, Haley Hayes, Olivia Smothers, Lauren Bengston, Isabelle DeLong, Meghan Harris, Emma Rayner

Iowa stayed connected to leader UCF through the first 500-meters. The Hawkeyes gained an open water lead over the rest of the field through the middle meters of the race. Towards the second half of the race, UCF found an open water lead over the Hawkeyes. As Iowa closed out the race, they found a push at the end to keep their open water lead over the field and close the gap on UCF.

Varsity Four
1 UCF (7:25.71)
2 Iowa (7:37.72)
3 UMass (7:49.70)
4 Jacksonville (7:55.30)
5 West Virginia (7:56.55)
6 Michigan State (8:06.24)
7 UAlbany (8:37.36)
Iowa: Kimberly Marquez (cox), Evan Schwickerath, Soph Pepper, Chloe Fortin, Kendall Doerr

The field stayed connected throughout the first 500-meters of the race. UCF took a few seats toward the middle meters of the race with SMU and Iowa staying connected to the leader. After the half-way point, UCF surged to an open water lead with Iowa and SMU battling back and forth down the home stretch. In the final 250-meters, Iowa pulled ahead and fought to the finish line to grab a second-place finish.

III Varsity Eight
1 UCF (6:54.46)
2 Iowa (7:00.64)
3 SMU (7:02.13)
4 Miami B (7:14.94)
5 Jacksonville (7:21.33)
Iowa: Jordyn Gassman (cox), Cait Quinn, Mikaela Mwangong, Ellie Stopak, Jadyn Pankow, Ryleigh McFarland, Maddy Stutler, Lena Jones, Amelia Short

Hawkeyes stayed connected to the leaders through the first 500 meters. UCF took an open water lead after the 500-meter mark, with Iowa maintaining an open water lead over Tulsa and Jacksonville. As the Hawkeyes sprinted to the finish line, they closed the open water gap but were unable to catch the leader.

II Varsity Four
1 UCF (7:35.65)
2 Iowa (7:47.53)
3 Jacksonville (7:59.85)
4 Tulsa (8:06.36)
5 Boston College (8:13.64)
6 Old Dominion (9:12.29)
Iowa: Maddie Reid (cox), Annabel Rayner, Madison Jones, Karire Evans, Emma Tate