October 2, 2024 Submitted by JP Powers
This weekend, amidst partly sunny skies and light breezes, with temperatures in the mid-to-high-60s, Hingham Crew traveled to beautiful Glastonbury, Connecticut to compete against some of the top public school rowing programs in the area. By the time the dust cleared Saturday morning, every single Hingham rower who had pulled an oar had a top three finish to show for their efforts.
For many years, Hingham Crew’s coaches have specialized in building powerhouse novice boats. Based on the early results, it would appear that Hingham’s top-level coaching and dedicated athletes have replenished the talent pool after last year’s squad moved up to the varsity boats. In their first race together on the 2,000 meter novice course, the first novice girls boat coxed by Shayla St. Croix, with Coco Prohm at stroke, Ginger Neihoff, Veronica Webb, Peyton Burke, June Rogan, Eme Bias, Lena Angel, and bow seat Celia McCarthy, got things started for Hingham with a bang. Despite limited opportunities to work together on the water due to unfavorable weather and water conditions in the weeks leading up to the opener, the girls put together an incredible performance as they flew past the competition, winning gold and finishing an incredible 37 seconds in front of their nearest competitor in the 9-boat field. Girls novice head coach Pat Houle remarked, “I couldn’t be prouder of how the girls performed in their first race. They pushed hard all the way down the course, maintaining a higher stroke rate than we initially planned, but they handled it with confidence. It was great to see them dominate against some really competitive novice crews, and it’s an exciting start to the season for this team.”
In the second race of the day, the Hingham boys novice eight, with coxswain Jordan Brown, stroke seat Andrew Accettella, Hector Munoz, Will Vanderweil, Nate Bradl, Spencer Farish, Michael Lane, Ben Ferguson, and bow seat Landy Vittorini, demonstrated poise and power as they raced past Avon, Stonington, Farmington, Guilford, and two Glastonbury boats to secure a second place finish. The young rowers showed a ton of promise as the calm water provided an ideal platform for the boys to demonstrate their considerable skills. Boys head novice coach Abi Kornet sees a ton of promise in these rowers, “I’m incredibly proud of the boys for going out there and getting after it in their first race, and against some strong competition. They locked in, worked as one, and let nothing get in their way, from the first stroke to the last. And then they got off the water smiling. And that’s a pretty amazing way to kick off the season.”
In the girls third varsity race, Hingham had two entries. The girls fourth varsity, with Grace Ji at coxswain, Elsie Olin at stroke, Shauna Arseneau, Lauren Newth, Peyton Burke, Coco Prohm, Ginger Neihoff, Kaylee Araujo, and bow seat Eva O’Sullivan raced to an impressive third place finish. Meanwhile, the Hingham girls third varsity, With Shayla St. Croix, Rose Lovendale, Dania Thayer, Taylor Sargent, Hayley Kost, Jane Betti, Aubrey Fairfield, Anne Kyriss, and bow seat Abrielle Beaudoin won another gold for Hingham, beating the Glastonbury entry by almost half a minute and demonstrating impressive early season polish. Coach Blasetti can’t wait to see the hard work keep paying off, “We worked hard leading up to this first regatta, and it showed in our performance. I’m excited to see how we grow and challenge ourselves throughout the season.”
The boys third varsity, with Henry Hoch at coxswain, Michael Catalfano at stroke, Ryan Potter, Owen Cerrato, Gerard Bottini, Aqueel Bharmal, William Watts, Liam Govoni, and bow seat Joseph Darlington looked extremely sharp against a strong field. The boys finished just behind Glastonbury, a minute ahead of another Glastonbury entry and two minutes ahead of Farmington.
The Hingham girls second varsity, filled with powerful and experienced rowers, absolutely whalloped the field in their race. As the winds picked up, coxswain Emily Gu, stroke seat Madeline Kittinger, Izzy Wagner, Sophia Santarelli, Annie Sargent, Jane Melia, Bianca Kiley, Lydia D’Arcy, and bow seat Maddie Owens set a furious pace as they blitzed past their competition. The girls finished 45 seconds ahead of second place Glastonbury, and far ahead of the other boats.
Next up, the boys second varsity put together a tremendous effort. Coxswain Tyler Bastia, stroke seat Owen Franklin, Owen Lefort, Will Whitrap, Oliver McLucas, Brendan Engel, Zakary Robbins, Will Cassidy, and bow seat Liam Connolly drove towards the finish less than a length behind Glastonbury in a remarkably close finish. Three seconds separated the two boats as Hingham just barely missed yet another gold medal.
The Hingham girls first varsity, with Coxswain Audrey Smith, stroke Emme Beaudoin, Natalie Shaw, Maeve Schnorr, Thea Migliaccio, Ava Sugrue, Eliza Powers, Louisa Orth, and bow Lynnayah Ryan put together a very strong effort. Despite a couple of mishaps, the girls missed a second-place finish by a mere half second, demonstrating a lot of potential in the young roster of rowers.
In the day’s final race, the boys first varsity, having experienced significant turnover due to the graduation of several formidable rowers, decisively showed that they remain a force to be reckoned with. Coxswain Lucas Mangili, stroke Slater Fairfield, Nicolas Mangili, Hanley Stroka, Walker Bogen, Lachlan Knies, Trevor Steiner, Will Barry, and bow seat Arlo Maxwell powered past several boats to secure a second place finish in an impressive early season show of power and conditioning.
Next weekend the team heads up to Lowell for a race on the Merrimack River in the Textile River Regatta. The massive race, featuring high school and club rowing teams from all across New England and as far away as Pennsylvania, will be another great test for the young and promising Hingham team.
