ITHACA, N.Y. – The No. 7 ranked Ithaca College men's rowing team is set to kick off their spring racing season on Saturday, April 1. The season will feature races against an array of rivaling teams on various race courses, ultimately concluding with the Liberty League Championships, New York State Championships, NIRC Championships and a potential bid to the Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) National Championships.
This is the first year where Ithaca College is a member of the IRA. The Bombers were recently announced as the seventh ranked team on the IRA Preseason Top-15 Poll.
Under the leadership of Head Coach
Justin Stangel, who is currently in the middle of his first year at the helm, many IC oarsmen return such as
Jake Lentz,
Gregg Seiz,
Seth Freeman,
James Ross,
Dehron Smith,
Wesley Hoglin,
Riley Maynard, and
Aidan Gardner. While many veteran rowers are back for the Bombers there are some newcomers who have been impressive thus far.
Some new names to look out for include some experienced first years. According to Stangel, "
Cameron Stanford,
Tristan Dole,
Bryce Williston and
Sami Smith are all making very positive impressions in their first year on the South Hill."
The spring season will open on April 1 where the Bombers will be at home on the Cayuga Inlet. The Cayuga Duals will feature races against Hobart, Williams College, and Cornell's lightweights.
When speaking on this weekend's races, Stangel said, "We have some great competition coming to Ithaca this weekend. It will be each team's first race of the season so it will be good to see how we stack up against quality opponents."
IC will remain at home for the two following weekends on April 8 and then the 15 to race in head-to-head races against the University of Rochester and RIT and then Skidmore College. The Bombers will look to continue the strong success they had across the board against these schools when the teams met last year.
The Bombers will hit the road for their first away trip on April 22 where they will head to Worcester, Massachusetts for a race against WPI. The team will again be on the road the following weekend in Clinton, New York for a race with Hamilton College, which will be the final regular season regatta for the team.
Saratoga Springs, New York will be the site for back-to-back days of racing on May 5 and 6 as the Bombers will take on the rest of the Liberty League at the Liberty League Championships and then the New York State Championships the following day, where more competition from across the state will join the pool of competitors.
The Bombers will head back to Worcester, Massachusetts on May 12 to compete in the NIRC Championship and take on a wider variety of strong competition from across the Northeast.
Dependent on post season racing results, the Bombers can qualify for a bid to the IRA Championships which would take place in Camden, New Jersey on June 3-4. The team will be in action this Saturday, April 1 at the Cayuga Duals. The first race is scheduled for approximately 12 p.m. The race can be viewed along the Cayuga Inlet with the finish line being just beyond the pier of the Ithaca Farmer's Market.
