May 10, 2024 by JP Powers
Early Sunday morning, amidst slightly overcast skies, a slight southeasterly breeze, and temperatures in the high 40s, the Hingham High School Crew team arrived at the Charles River to take on Friends of Brookline. The picturesque shores of Boston and Cambridge provided the perfect backdrop for an intense and competitive day of rowing.
The racing day on the 1,250 meter varsity course opened with the boys fourth varsity crew, a boat that features a varied mix of experience from upperclassmen to new novice rowers. Head boys coach Alix Howie observed that the boys “nailed their start, maintained a solid stroke rate, and kept their power up throughout the race.” The boat included Owen Weinstein at coxswain, Aqueel Bharmal stroke, Ryan Potter, Brian Magner, Gerard Bottini, Luca Arenti, Jack O’Leary, Liam Govoni, and Brent Strauss at the bow. The Brookline boat demonstrated terrific form over the course of the race and managed to finish 30 seconds ahead.
The next race featured two Hingham boats, girls third and fourth varsity, against Brookline’s 3V entry. The Hingham 3V boat, with Shayla St. Croix at coxswain, Madeline Kittenger at stroke, Dania Thayer, Dillon Turner, Bianca Kiley, Taylor Sargent, Aubrey Fairfield, Emme Beaudoin, and Abrielle Beaudoin, pulled off a terrific win, finishing more than eight seconds ahead of Brookline. The girls 4V boat, with Emily Gu at coxswain, Rose Lovedale at stroke, Shauna Arseneau, Lauren Newth, Hayley Kost, Elsie Olin, Stella Gutierrez, Anne Kyriss, and Annie Sargent in the bow nearly managed to nab second place, finishing less than two seconds behind after an intense duel to the finish line.
Next up, the boys third varsity race featured a very tightly-contested affair as Tyler Bastia at coxswain, Brendan Engel at stroke, Niko Mangili, Lachlan Knies, Oliver McLucas, Owen Cerrato, Zak Robbins, Will Whitrap, and Liam Connelly in bow finished a mere six seconds behind their Brookline counterparts. Coach Howie noted, “they hung right with Brookline for the first half of the race. Although Brookline did get a bit of a lead through the bridges, these guys pulled together on the sprints and took back seats, closing the gap and finishing overlapped.”
In the girls second varsity race, Jane Betti coxed, with Sophia Santarelli at stroke, followed by Genevieve Vale, Louisa Orth, Isabelle Wagner, Eliza Powers, Nina Murphy, Lydia D’Arcy, and Maddie Owens in the bow as both boats got off to a strong start. Hingham appeared to nudge ahead by a small margin over the first half of the course, but Brookline’s familiarity with the river and strong second-half effort proved the difference. The narrow space between the two boats in the close confines under the bridges brought Hingham a little too far to port during the middle of the race, costing them a few precious seconds as they were forced to course-correct to starboard and Brookline managed to cross the finish line a few seats ahead, beating Hingham to the finish by less than three seconds.
The boys second varsity featured yet another very competitive race as Lucas Mangili coxed, Jack Burns, Arlo Maxwell, Will Cassidy, Alex Doggett, Owen Franklin, Cullen Moriarty, Hanley Stroka, and Trevor Steiner in the bow seat. Both boats got off to strong starts with neither boat able to create much separation. The Hingham boat stuck right with Brookline all the way to the finish line, managing to keep an overlap through to the end. Team captain Cullen Moriarty ‘24 noted, “While Brookline did pull ahead in the beginning, we stayed motivated and put up our best fight, staying close behind them for the rest of the race. We found a new focus with the best set we’ve had this season during a race; I’m excited to see our boat build upon this.”
The girls first varsity race was a tale of two halves. For the first half of the race, after a strong start, Coxswain Grace Ji, stroke Maeve Schnorr, Maisie Knies, Sophie Kerr, Thea Migliaccio, Ava Sugrue, Natalie Shaw, Marissa Matthews, and bow seat Lynnayah Ryan nosed ahead of their competition by a small, but noticeable margin. However, midway through the race, Brookline found another gear and managed to pull ahead, finishing 10 seconds in front after a sprint to the finish line.
The boys first varsity boat submitted yet another extremely strong effort in a season full of them as coxswain Jack Levy, stroke Dylan Drew, James Feeley, Sam Ackerman, Walker Bogen, Will Barry, James Barry, Slater Fairfield, and bow seat Josh Bradshaw powered ahead of their counterparts. While they finished a solid four seconds ahead, the win would have been more decisive if not for Brookline’s familiarity with the course. In the last couple of hundred meters, the Hingham boat surged straight ahead, while the Brookline boat made a tactical turn to port, taking the shortest route towards the finish. Hingham needed every foot of their significant lead to hit the line first, having rowed a considerably greater distance for the win.
Coach Howie described the fierce battle, “What a race to finish the morning! Hingham jumped out right at the start, grabbing a few seats right away and stayed ahead the rest of the race. Despite a Brookline move at the River Street bridge and nearly clashing oars, they held their lead, pushing a high rate through the finish line. We are really looking forward to the rest of the season and I think both crews are very excited for a rematch at MPSRA!”
Team captain Dylan Drew ‘24 was gratified that the team’s hard work resulted in a breakthrough after some amazingly close races, “We were all very determined after two disappointing losses by just half a second. We all made the commitment to really lock in this week during practice and it definitely paid off in the race.”
The novice girls utilized the 800 meter course and raced multiple times in order to practice aligning, steering safely, and sharing lanes with competitors. In the girls Novice A boat, coxswain Octavia Atkins, stroke seat Veronica Webb, Ginger Neihoff, Lena Angel, Tag Tomlinson, Sophia Peregrine, Eva O’Sullivan, Lexi Messina, and bow seat Celia McCarthy showed great progress and competitive spirit.
The girls Novice B featured coxswain Octavia Atkins, Kalianna Stockbridge at stroke, Eme Bias, June Rogan, Peyton Burke, Tilly Kenny, Charlotte LeClair, Izzie Donnelly, and Ashley Sinkus in bow seat. During the three races, a Brookline boat accidentally entered the race course, resulting in a re-start. Overall, it was a terrific learning opportunity for the new rowers and a great experience rowing on the Charles.
Girls novice coach and Hingham Crew Program Director Pat Houle had effusive praise for the efforts of both the varsity and novice rowers, “Our girls truly raised the bar this past week, both on and off the water. The dedication and effort put in by every member of our team were evident when we took to the Charles River to race against Brookline. It was a formidable challenge, but our varsity and novice boats rose to the occasion, performing exceptionally well against a strong opponent. Special commendation goes to our coxswains, whose expert navigation through narrow bridges was instrumental in our success. I couldn’t be prouder of our team’s achievements this past weekend, and excited to build on this momentum going into our last weeks of the season.”
In the final races of the day, the boys novice boat pulled off two wins, demonstrating great growth. With coxswain Henry Hoch, Michael Catalfano stroke, Gerard Bottini, Aedan Sullivan, Euan Chesney-Douglas, Luca Arienti, Myles Figueroa, Liam Govoni, and Seph Darlington in bow, the boys used strong starts to build momentum and swept to victory.
Boys novice Coach Abi Kornet is excited about the promise of these young rowers, “The boys did fantastic, winning both of their races. It was clear the drills they’ve been doing were paying off. With strong starts, they pulled away, maintaining a high stroke rate and solid power. Being able to make it happen twice showed them what they’re capable of.”
This Saturday the season continues as the team will head to Hooksett, New Hampshire for a race against Bedford Crew.