On Sunday afternoon, the Notre Dame women's rowing team turned in a dominant display of team depth in the Head of the Rock Regatta in Rockford, Ill. Against opponents including Wisconsin, Minnesota, Purdue and Iowa, the Notre Dame team had three boats finish in the top 10 of the open eight event.
The team entered only three varsity boats into the event, and Notre Dame's first varsity boat took third place behind Wisconsin and Minnesota, with its second varsity boat placing sixth and its third varsity boat placing 10th.
Along with the three varsity boats, Notre Dame also entered two novice boats in the race, which saw 28 boats in total compete. The team had been looking forward to the race since the beginning of the season.
"We have been preparing for the race at Rockford for some time now," said senior rower Sarah Palandech, who sat bow seat in the varsity eight boat that finished third. "We were very excited to get out on the course and race against some competitive crews. We rowed well, are happy with our performance, and we are looking forward to competing in a few weeks at home."
Junior Maria Romano, the coxswain on the first varsity boat, agreed that the race was an important step in getting the new rowers an opportunity to learn and was useful for the veterans to shake off some rust.
"I thought this was a good race for us to go out and get some experience," she said. "It was a great day for a race and we were anxious to get out there and see what we could do."
Sophomore rower Lindsay McQuaid, who manned the four seat of the second varsity eight, was also happy with her team's performance, but looking forward to the season ahead.
"Overall it was a great day: sunny weather, competitive racing and we placed all three varsity boats in the top 10," she said.
