Ithaca’s women’s varsity rowing program was initiated in the spring of 1975. Competing under club status, the Bombers captured the 1976 Dad Vail varsity eight title the first year women’s races were offered at the regatta. Jerry Dietz, a member of the bronze medal-winning men’s heavyweight eight as an undergraduate, guided Ithaca to the crown in his first year as women’s coach. Although women’s rowing grew nationally over the next few years, Ithaca claimed the Dad Vail championship again in 1979, coached by Julie Rife, the stroke of the 1976 crew.
Peg Mallery, who rowed in Ithaca’s top crew in 1981 and 1982 before transferring, competed for the U.S. national team in the inaugural 1986 Goodwill Games and in the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea.
In 1983, women’s crew became a varsity sport at Ithaca College. After several inconsistent years, coach Jocelyn Kearing guided Ithaca’s women’s varsity to the first two of what is now 33 consecutive winning seasons. Included in that run were 13 New York State small-school titles. The state championship, first raced in 1990, now includes nearly 30 colleges and universities.
A key performer in the emerging women’s program was Becky Metz Robinson. After two letter-winning seasons with the Bombers, Robinson made the national team in 1991. A year later she was a final-day cut from the 1992 U.S. Olympic team. She returned to help coach the Bombers and in 1995 became the first crew program representative to be inducted into the Ithaca College Athletic Hall of Fame.
The first NCAA-sponsored championship regatta for women was held in 1997. A women’s four from Ithaca qualified for the all-division event and placed fourth in the petite final and 10th overall. Mary Obidinski ’97, a member of that crew, competed internationally with the U.S. national team. In 2001 she won the women’s lightweight double at Princeton’s World Cup event. The Bombers returned to the NCAA championships in 1998, were the second-highest finishing Division II or III team at the 2001 championships and placed third at the 2002 event (the first championship exclusively for Division III teams) before placing third in 2003.
The 2004 team earned the program’s first national championship, capping the Bombers’ most successful season. The varsity eight boat earned a gold medal at the NCAA championships and the second varsity eight boat qualified for the grand final (the first time any second varsity eight had done so). Robinson was named the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) Coach of the Year for the second time in her career.
A year later Ithaca became the first school to repeat as Division III national champions. The Bombers secured the title when their varsity 8 boat overtook Smith for second place in the grand final, moving ahead in the race's final 500 meters.
Since 2005, Ithaca women's rowing has qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships 13 times. IC was the national runner-up in 2006 and placed third in 2021 as well as 2022. The Bombers have also notched six fourth place showings during this dominant run and fifth on two other occasions.
Ithaca officially joined a conference in 2017 - the Liberty League - and has won the league title each season since becoming a full-time member - 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2022.
The success of the program can be seen at the highest levels of competition as several former members of the women's crew team have gone on to compete with the U.S. National team including Meghan Musnicki and Taylor Goetzinger who have each medaled in international competition. Musnicki was on the national team for six years, earning 10 gold medals in international events along with two silver medals and one bronze. Goetzinger has medaled twice on the international stage including one gold medal and one bronze.
In 2016, both Musnicki and Emily Morley represented the Bombers in the Rio Olympics. Musnicki rowed for the U.S. National team, while Morley represented the Bahamas. Musnicki continued her career as an Olympic athlete, as she once again race in the 2021 Games (2020) in Toyko, and she was named the 2021 USRowing Women's Rower of the Year.
8/12/2022
