GOLD RIVER, Calif. – A record-setting season for the Duke rowing program ended Sunday on the last day of the NCAA Championships at the Sacramento State Aquatic Center. The Blue Devils' V4 and 2V8 won their C Final races while the V8 took sixth in its C Final to help Duke to a 17th place overall finish.
By winning their C Finals, the V4 and 2V8 claimed 13th place at the NCAA Championships with the V8 earning 18th. Duke was making the program's first NCAA Championships appearance this weekend.
“Today was a good day for Duke,” head coach Megan Cooke Carcagno said. “I'm really proud of our seniors and how the V4 and 2V8 raced. Overall I'm happy for Duke but ready to take the next big step forward as a team. We faltered a bit but that's what happens with an inexperienced team. Next year, the future looks very bright and we'll train hard to move forward.”
The V4 began the day with a comeback win against Syracuse. The Blue Devils, seeded 12th entering the championships, trailed the 14-seed Orange through the first 500 meters, 1:48.453-1:49.993. Duke came on strong in the final 1,500 meters, outpacing Syracuse for a 7:22.311-7:25.635 victory. The time was the best of the weekend for Duke's V4. Washington State, the 15 seed, placed third (7:28.254) with Navy (7:28.871), Southern California (7:38.169) and Northeastern (7:39.963) rounding out the final.
Duke's 2V8 picked up the program's second C Final victory with a strong 6:34.803 time to surpass 13-seed Indiana, which finished in 6:37.403. Duke was seeded 11th for the event and narrowly missed the A/B Semifinal. Much like the V4, the 2V8 faced a deficit through the first 500 meters, trailing Indiana 1:38.330-1:38.800. Duke turned up the pace in the next 500 meters and gained a lead it would not give away. No. 16 seed Syracuse placed third (6:39.067) with Gonzaga (6:42.390), Northeastern (6:44.067) and Southern California (6:46.136) completing the field.
In the final race of the year, the Blue Devil V8, originally seeded 14th, came in sixth with a 6:31.650 mark. The 13th-seeded Washington State boat took the race in 6:22.990 with Gonzaga (6:24.932), Yale (6:25.156), Indiana (6:29.012) and Northeastern (6:30.827) finishing ahead of Duke.
“The varsity eight had a bit of a stumble when it had to sit on the water and wait out a broken foot stretcher in the Northeastern boat,” Cooke Carcagno added. “I think the extra time sitting on the water didn't help us. In the end, though, we lost to better teams today.”
2016 NCAA Championships Duke Results
May 27-29
Lake Natoma | Sacramento State Aquatics Center
Gold River, Calif.
Sunday Session
NCAA Women's Division I V4 C Final
1. Duke - 7:22.311 (Sarah Wall, Mary Wilson, Sarah Fletcher, Marissa Donadio and Rhea Bergman)
2. Syracuse - 7:25.635
3. Washington State – 7:28.254
4. Navy - 7:28.254
5. Southern California - 7:38.169
6. Northeastern - 7:39.963
NCAA Women's Division I 2V8 C Final
1. Duke - 6:34.803 (Simone Pitre, Megan Conroy, Lauren Miranda, Shannon Tierney, Sophie Simister, Julia Weber, Phoebe Donovan, Hannah Hewitt and Elizabeth Horne)
2. Indiana - 6:37.403
3. Syracuse - 6:39.067
4. Gonzaga - 6:42.390
5. Northeastern - 6:44.067
6. Southern California - 6:46.136
NCAA Women's Division I V8 C Final
1. Washington State - 6:22.990
2. Gonzaga - 6:24.932
3. Yale - 6:25.156
4. Indiana - 6:29.012
5. Northeastern - 6:30.827
6. Duke - 6:31.650 (Meagan Lew, Katherine Maitland, Karley Whelan, Isabel Ruby-Hill, Jessica Findlay, Alex Stonehill, Katie Dukovich, Meridith Kisting and Celia Macrae)
#GoDuke