BEVERLY, Mass. – Endicott crew headed to Philadelphia on May 12 for the the Dad Vail Regatta, the largest intercollegiate rowing event in the United States. Endicott was represented by three boats, a women's novice boat, a women's varsity boat, and a men's varsity boat. The novice competed in 2000 meter heats in which the top three times move on to a final. The varsity boats competed 1900 meter in time trials, where the top 18 times move on to a final.
The novice boat consisted of Victoria Ziolek (Nashua, N.H.) at stroke, Michelle Lorenti (Andover, Mass.) at three seat, Kendra Kirby (Redding, Conn.) at two seat, Gabrielle Wiggin (Lebanon, Maine) in bow, and coxed by Caroline Judd (Litchfield, Conn.).
They competed against tough competition including Central Oklahoma, Duquesne, Franklin Pierce, and Florida. Ziolek said the boat stayed with all of the other boats for 500-meters until Central Oklahoma and Duquesne pulled ahead. Throughout the rest of the race, Endicott stayed close to Florida, but could not pass them in their final sprint, finishing just two seconds behind Florida at 9:20.
The men's varsity boat raced next, with Brendan McGuire (Kings Park, N.Y.) at stroke, Jesse Gottesdiener (Newtown Center, Mass.) at three seat, Addison Culupa (Jericho, Vt.) at two seat, Jake Somosky (Glastonbury, Conn.) in bow, and Katherine Delaney-Rodriguez (Belmont, Mass.) coxing. They faced tough competition, racing against 37 other crews. They stayed strong through the middle of the piece until a rower hit a bouy. The incident slowed them up for a few strokes, but they quickly picked it back up with a power 10. They started their sprint a little early, trying to hold off Wentworth who had begun gaining water. Somosky said of the race "we kept the power up to the finish to finish off our season strong." The men's varsity finished with a time of 7:03.
The women's varsity boat, Brenna Shanahan (Shelton, Conn.) at stroke, Kendra Czernicki (North Chelmsford, Mass.) at three seat, Erika Mercieri (Monson, Mass.) at two seat, Claire McKinnon (West Roxbury, Mass.) in bow, with Steph Leone (Oxford, Conn.) coxing, competed against 31 other crews from colleges across the country. They had a good, strong piece, keeping the intensity up and sticking to the race plan. All five girls agreed that the piece was the best piece they had ever rowed together. They finished with a time of 7:44. For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.