Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Athletics

	2024-25 WOMEN'S ROWING TEAM
	SPORT:	Women's Rowing	EVENT (If Applicable):
	YEAR (S):	2024-25

From the start of the fall slate, all eyes were on the program's first NCAA II National Championship. Things looked promising after the season-opening Head of the Schuylkill, where Varsity 8 nearly medaled with a fourth-place showing out of 53 boats. 

As the calendar flipped to the spring, both Varsity 4 and 8 shells went undefeated against NCAA II competition during March. The month concluded with a dominating performance at the FIRA Championships. Embry-Riddle won seven of the 10 races it competed in to claim the state title with 140.75 points, almost doubling up second-place's tally (73.5).

That kicked off a string of impressive results as the Eagles also went on to win the UCO Invite, which featured most of the division's top programs, as well as a SSC title. It was the first time both the four and eight boats won their races at the conference championship. 

Embry-Riddle locked up one of six available bids to the NCAA II National Championship and entered the event ranked T-2 with the No. 2 seed in fours and the No. 3 seed in eights. It was a rocky start on Friday morning as both Blue and Gold shells were sent to the repechages due to second-place finishes in the heats. However, ERAU easily advanced to both Grand Finals by claiming the four and eight repechages to give the program a fighting chance at winning a national title on Saturday.   

A dramatic day of racing began with a jaw-dropping performance by Embry-Riddle's eight. Western Washington and Cal Poly Humboldt were the clear favorites due to their speed in the heats. For a majority of the race, the Eagles trailed the Vikings, but with 250 meters left, Embry-Riddle dug deep and powered past WWU to shock the field and win the V8 title, earning the maximum 18 points. 

With that in hand, all the four had to do was finish no more than one place behind Western Washington. Rain pushed the start up the race to the late afternoon, a delay of approximately eight or so hours, but the wait was worth it. Embry-Riddle crossed the finish in third ahead of the Vikings to lock up the title. When including NAIA championships, this was Embry-Riddle Athletics' third team title joining men's basketball (2000) and men's tennis (2013) and the first in its NCAA II era. ERAU became just the eighth different program to win the NCAA II women's rowing championship and the third SSC member.

2024-25 Season Highlights
- Earned the program's fourth-straight Sunshine State Conference title
- Also captured its fourth Florida Intercollegiate Rowing Asssociation championship
- Sarah Kinlocke, Aria Moses, and Jolee Paulk were named first team CRCA All-Americans
- Kinlocke was also the first in program history to be honored as the CRCA's D2 Athlete of the Year
- Soleil Edwards became Embry-Riddle Athletics' first NCAA Elite 90 award recipient 
- Head Coach Grant Maddock was named the CRCA's National Coach of the Year as well as the SSC's Co-Coach of the Year
- Maddock and assistant coaches Sami Bay and Drayton Piper were honored as the CRCA's National Staff of the Year