No. 5 Women’s Rowing Dominates en Route to FIRA Championship Crown

3/30/2024 6:35:00 PM | By: Kyrin Mayfield

Results
SARASOTA, Fla. - For the third time in the last four years, fifth-ranked Embry-Riddle women's rowing was crowned the champions of the state at the Florida Intercollegiate Rowing Association (FIRA) Championships on Saturday at Nathan Benderson Park. The Eagles amassed 113 points, 58 more than second-place No. 7 Rollins, and won seven out of nine races they competed in. In total, the Blue and Gold racked up eight medals, including six golds, one silver and one bronze.

Additionally, Embry-Riddle rowing won the overall title with the men contributing 141 points for a total of 254, more than double the amount of any other competitor.

All the Eagles did was win to start the FIRA Championships. ERAU claimed victory in each of the first six races.

The action began on Friday when Jadyn Harjung (coxswain), Shelby Ernst, Sofia Lorenzini, Soleil Edwards, and Alexandra Weilert raced their way into the A Final of Freshman/Novice 4 by claiming the heat by over 22 seconds with a time of 8:23.70.

On Saturday, it was an early 8:10 a.m. start for the Eagles' D2 Varsity 4 boat. Powered by Laurel Grein (coxswain), Alexandria Fife-Winslow, Danielle DelGrippo, Katie Braddick, and Reagan Hurt, Embry-Riddle held off Barry and Rollins to earn gold with a mark of 7:52.69.

Less than an hour later, Varsity 8 followed suit with Harjung (coxswain), Abby Webb, Kristen Vigna, Ernst, Lorenzini, Edwards, Elise Dezotell, Aria Moses, and Weilert cruising to a nine-second victory (7:02.77).

The Junior Varsity 8 boat containing Grein (coxswain), Fife-Winslow, DelGrippo, Briella Goldenberg, Sofia Glaser, Caterina Hart, Lilly Avezzano, Braddick, and Hurt stopped the clock at 7:16.09 to beat out Rollins and Florida.

A rare entry in doubles went the Blue and Gold's way as Weilert and Edwards set a time 16 seconds faster than any other boat at 7:50.82 to cap off the morning session.

The wins kept coming in the afternoon when Grein (coxswain), Fife-Winslow, DelGrippo, Hart, and Hurt laid down a time of 7:47.60 in Junior Varsity 4 to fend off a pair of Rollins shells for a six-second victory.

Harjung (coxswain), Webb, Glaser, Braddick, and Avezzano captured a bronze medal in Freshman/Novice 4 with a time of 8:02.29. They were edged by just seven tenths of a second by Tampa for a silver medal.

In the Varsity 4 "B" race, Grein (coxswain), Moses, Goldenberg, Vigna, and Dezotell dominated from start to finish, besting Florida by 38 seconds and Florida State by 44 seconds thanks to a mark of 8:04.84.

The final race of the day featured a large eight-boat field in Varsity 4. Embry-Riddle and Florida Tech pulled away from the competition, but it was the Panthers who crossed the finish first as Embry-Riddle was seven seconds back (7:36.56).

The Eagles head out west for the Pioneer/Pilot Invitational hosted by Lewis & Clark College in Vancouver, Washington on April 6.

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