Sunday in Boston, the Virginia women’s rowing team raced to a pair of top-five finishes at the Head of the Charles Regatta, its first event of the fall season. The Cavaliers’ Varsity Four boat — featuring reigning NCAA champions senior Hannah Solis-Cohen and juniors Ellen Pate and Marijane Brennan — came in fourth place in the Championship Fours, while the Virginia Varsity Eight placed third in the Championship Eights.
The Varsity Four boat crossed the finish line in 18:24.07 for the second-best time among collegiate boats behind third-place Brown. USRowing took the title in 17:33.79, with second-place New York Athletic coming in at 18:02.38. Don Rowing, Iowa and Notre Dame all posted times inside of 19 minutes to take home fifth through seventh place.
Virginia’s Varsity Eight, meanwhile, finished less than a second behind Brown for second place, ending a four-year winning streak at the regatta. The Cavaliers — who had senior team captains Sam Casto and Tessa Dikkers in the bow and two-seat, respectively — clocked in at 16:24.17, while race-champion California dusted the competition in 15:58.62.
The Cavaliers’ also took sixth place in Saturday’s Women’s Alumni Eight, which Michigan won for the second consecutive season.
Virginia next competes Nov. 1 at the Princeton Chase in Princeton, N.J., where the Cavaliers’ Varsity Eight placed second last year.
