SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - This past Friday, the Ithaca College women's rowing team raced in the Liberty League Championship in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. The winner of the Liberty League Championship First Varsity event earns automatic qualification for the NCAA or IRA Championship. The sun was out with some occasional clouds, and some wind from multiple directions. With only eight teams in attendance, and most teams unable to field crews in every event, the regatta was short & sweet. Every event except the WV8+ would race a final only.
 
With qualification on the line, the Women's 1^st Varsity 8+ knew the pressure was on. William Smith has been a step ahead of the league all season and went into the day as the top seed.  Meanwhile, both Skidmore & Rochester had close finishes with the Bombers only two weeks prior at states. As the only event of the day that required heats, Ithaca first faced St. Lawrence and University of Rochester. A bus mishap prevented Union from arriving in time to race in their heat as planned, so top-3 qualification to the final was assured, but with Rochester in the next lane, Ithaca wanted to put down a confident piece while leaving a gear in reserve. The Bombers & Yellowjackets rowed nearly even throughout the heat, quickly moving away from St Lawrence, but refusing to let go of each other. Rochester crossed the line in 7:20.1 with Ithaca close behind in 7:21.1 and St. Lawrence in 7:49.689.  In the opposite heat, William Smith built such a notable gap over the other crews that in order to conserve energy for the final they finished the race at a stroke rate visibly lower than an expected race rating.
 
Next on the schedule was the W2v8+ final.  Kaelyn Morandi (cox), Kate March, Bryanna Mendoza Arias, Jasmina Vahle, Melanie Heim, Maisie Sagaas, Lauren Huber, Claire Edwards, and Marie Nemeth, lineup up for the Bombers against William Smith, Rochester, Skidmore, St. Lawrence, RIT, and Union. A breakage incident in the first 500 required officials to call back the race, but most of the other crews made it nearly 500 meters into the race before being stopped and sent back to restart. William Smith showed their depth in this event as well, handling the field easily, while Rochester moved out into a comfortable 2^nd place.  The Bombers, meanwhile, fought more closely with Skidmore, making powerful moves throughout the middle of the race. Ithaca snagged the third-place finish with a time of 7:47.687, behind William Smith and Rochester who finished in 7:15.818 and 7:34.263 respectively.
 
The 3V final ended up as a dual race (2 boats only), with Ithaca facing off against William Smith. In the first half, Ithaca was in the fight, making effective moves to gain seats back and hang on, but the depth of this year's Heron squad showed again.  In the end, William Smith crossed first with a time of 7:29.311, and Ithaca crossed with a time of 7:42.974. Our Bomber lineup was Sarah Chraibi (cox), Ava Connor, Stella Kartsonas, Emily Murphy, Naomi Bozenski, Katharine Sernick, Emmi Chen, Mya Veracka, and Brandi Landis
 
Next up was the Varsity 4+ event. The Liberty League no longer recognizes a "novice" category, but the Bomber entry, coxed by Junior Cameron Silberman, was comprised of 1^st years Christina Cox, Maeve Van Jura, Julia Sweet & Jamie Friedlander. The 4+ had a strong start against William Smith, RIT and Rochester before crews started to separate throughout the piece. In the end, the Bombers took third in a time of 8:56.229, behind RIT and William Smith who finished with 8:26.894 and 8:32.60 respectively. Rochester rounded out the group with a time of 9:37.921.
 
The last event of the day, was the 1V Final, where Ithaca lined up with RIT, William Smith, Rochester, Skidmore, and St. Lawrence. William Smith & Skidmore jumped out to establish margins right off the start sequence, leaving a close battle for 3^rd between Ithaca, RIT and Rochester just off their sterns.  The Bombers fought hard to stay in the pack, making strong moves and battling RIT, taking seats and pushing away, but were unable to hold the same margin they had on Rochester & Skidmore at states two weeks prior. At the line, William Smith finished according to their seed in 6:52.172, with Skidmore (7:02.001) Rochester (7:09.694) and The Bombers trailing (7:19.485). The 1V lineup was  Payton Fisch (cox), Emmeline Robinson, Samantha Gallagher, Annoura Stewart, Alexandra Catlin, Emma Thorne, Kai Lincke, Julia DiCostanzo, and Hope Oliveira
 
The full results can be viewed here. This includes the men's team, who swept their events and brought home the Liberty League Trophy. They punched their ticket to Sacramento for the IRA Championship. A replay of the event livestream – produced by the Ithaca College Park Productions Drone Squad with commentary by Dan Robinson – can be watched here.
 
The Women finish their season at NIRCs in Worcester, Mass. next weekend Sunday, May 10.
 
If you aren't in Worcester… alumni in the Philadelphia area are invited to join a 50^th-anniversary celebration for the Ithaca lineup that won the inaugural Women's Varsity 8+ event  that was included in the Dad Vail Regatta. There will be a ceremony on Friday May 8^th to honor the crew after races & Ithaca will have a viewing tent for alumni set up as a home base to watch the racing both Fri & Sat 5/9.