October 10, 2024 By J.P. Powers
This past beautiful and sunny fall Sunday, Hingham High School Crew ventured to Lowell, Massachusetts to race in the Textile River Regatta. The regatta, located on the Merrimack River, featured dozens of club and high school teams from all across the region. The race provided a terrific opportunity for Hingham’s rowers to compete in new boats (including the two new women’s fours, which will debut at the Head of the Charles) and test their conditioning by racing in multiple events.
In the first race of the day, the brand-new women’s four, featuring coxswain Shayla St. Croix, stroke Rose Lovendale, Annie Sargent, Stella Gutierrez, and bow seat Bianca Kiley, acquitted themselves well against a very strong 18-boat field. The girls gained invaluable experience as they battled hard and showed that Hingham will be a serious contender in two weeks at the Charles River.
In the next race featuring Hingham boats, the boys first and second novice 8s battled against a huge field of 24 boats. The boys second novice, with coxswain Fox Clarke, stroke Andrew Accettella, Hector Munoz, Xavier Bogen, Matthew Seggev, Brendan Conroy, Huck Shaughnessy, Liam O’Toole, and bow seat Jack Dorn finished near the middle of the pack – an exceptional accomplishment for a group of mostly brand-new rowers. Coach Abi Kornet believes that the boys benefited from the teamwork they displayed, “These guys found their flow right off the start line, kept their heads in the boat, and swung together. I’m proud of them for their dedication and effort; it gave them a taste of what they can achieve next weekend.” Meanwhile, the boys first novice, with coxswain Jordan Brown, stroke Sam Whitrap, Ben Hansmire, Will Vanderweil, Nate Bradl, Spencer Farish, Michael Lane, Ben Ferguson, and bow Landy Vittorini, once again powered past a number of other boats, including archrival Duxbury, to finish 7th. The boys demonstrated power and poise as they raced to a strong finish against a large field of competitors. Coach Abi praised the work ethic and grit of the young squad, “While this was their second race of the season for most, it was their first against our usual competition in the area. They effectively maintained a high stroke rate through the body of the race with a noticeable sprint at the end, ultimately placing them amongst some of the toughest programs in our region; an excellent position to be in as we head into the rest of our season.”
The girls brand-new first varsity 4+ boat, featuring coxswain Emily Gu, stroke Madeline Kittinger, Izzy Wagner, Sophia Santarelli, and bow seat Maddie Owens, competed in a massive field of 26 boats. The girls demonstrated a lot of firepower as they were able to pass multiple boats and show tremendous grit, particularly as all of the rowers would later compete in the second varsity race.
The next race featured both the boys second and third varsity entries in a 15-boat field. The boys third varsity, with coxswain Brent Strauss, stroke Michael Catalfano, William Watts, Owen Cerrato, Gerard Bottini, Aedan Sullivan, Jack O’Leary, Luca Arienti, and bow seat Joseph Darlington, powered to an impressive 6th place finish, topping many strong entries. Meanwhile, the boys second varsity, with coxswain Lucas Mangili, stroke Owen Franklin, Owen Lefort, Will Cassidy, Oliver McLucas, Brendan Engel, Zakary Robbins, Will Whitrap, and bow seat Liam Connolly, surged to a bronze medal finish as they passed multiple boats along the way.
Hingham raced three boats in the 13-boat second varsity field, with the girls second, third, and fourth varsity boats demonstrating the depth and power of the team. The fourth boat, with coxswain Grace Ji, stroke Lauren Newth, Shauna Arseneau, Dillon Turner, Elsie Olin, Stella Gutierrez, Eva O’Sullivan, Kaylee Araujo, and bow seat Mae Mahoney, showed excellent conditioning and form as they finished ahead of multiple entries. The third varsity, with Coxswain Shayla St. Croix, Rose Lovendale, Hayley Kost, Taylor Sargent, Annie Sargent, Jane Betti, Aubrey Fairfield, Anne Kyriss, and bow seat Abrielle Beaudoin, showed a lot of grit as they finished ahead of multiple boats despite having several rowers competing in their second races of the day. Finally, the second varsity boat with Emily Gu, Madeline Kittinger, Izzy Wagner, Sophia Santarelli, Bianca Kiley, Jane Melia, Dania Thayer, Lydia D’Arcy, and bow seat Maddie Owens fought incredibly hard, passing multiple boats and grabbing bronze, despite multiple rowers hot-seating after rowing in earlier races.
In the crowded girls novice race, Hingham had two entries. The second novice boat, with coxswain Alexis Messina, stroke Neve Brown, Ellie White, Shelby Stroka, Ava Kelly, Fiona Galvin, Paige Moore, Valentina Neyra, and bow seat Sasha Damon, rowed a very impressive race. With many of the girls competing in the first regatta of their careers, they still managed to pass some boats and finish very strong. Meanwhile, the girls first novice boat submitted yet another statement race after last week’s blazing finish at Glastonbury. Despite competition from several elite clubs and many high school teams, coxswain Ashley Sinkus, stroke Coco Prohm, Ginger Niehoff, Veronica Webb, Peyton Burke, June Rogan, Eme Bias, Lena Angel, and bow Celia McCarthy put together another monster race and grabbed the silver medal in the 19-boat field. Both of the novice boats are off to very strong starts in their rowing careers, and the future of the team looks very promising in their capable hands.
The second-to-last race of the day featured the boys first varsity boat with coxswain Tyler Bastia, stroke Slater Fairfield, Nicholas Mangili, Hanley Stroka, Walker Bogen, Lachlan Knies, Trevor Steiner, Will Barry, and bow seat Arlo Maxwell once again demonstrated power and stamina. In the 15-boat race, the boys raced past several strong entries and powered their way to an impressive sixth place finish. The boys look to be in prime condition to make a statement at the Head of the Charles in two weeks. Coach Dewey was proud of the efforts of all of the boys’ boats and singled out the efforts of coxswains in putting their teams in excellent positions to compete, “Once again I am so proud! Fall Head racing is a coxswain’s sport: steering the tightest lines through turns, edging out the competition, letting rowers know their position, and keeping crews focused while adding motivational moves is the most difficult job in the boat. All three coxswains performed well and new rower-turned-coxswain Brent Strauss gave his 3V boat a most excellent ride in his Textile debut.”
The last race of the day featured the girls first varsity, who had a terrific showing. In the 16-boat field, the crew of coxswain Audrey Smith, stroke Emme Beaudoin, Natalie Shaw, Louisa Orth, Thea Migliaccio, Ava Sugrue, Eliza Powers, Jane Melia, and bow seat Nayah Ryan faced a strong field of club and high school teams. Despite hot-seating a rower, the girls muscled past multiple boats and submitted a very strong effort, capping off a terrific day of rowing for the team.
This coming weekend, Hingham Crew travels to Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, Massachusetts to compete in the Northeast Fall Championships, where they will take on yet another impressive field of rowing programs from all across the region. All are welcome to attend and cheer on the boys and girls from Hingham.