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Second Varsity Eight Claims Top Prize At Dad Vail

Margaret Devendorf

The Second Varsity Eight boat of coxswain Margaret Devendorf (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool), Jessica Hughes (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool), Morgan Witte (Baldwinsville, NY/C.W. Baker), Kristen Lane (Buffalo, NY/Hutch Tech), Nicole Cyr (Groton, NY/Dryden), Maggie Fairgrieve (Fort Erie, Ont./Lakeshore Catholic), Amanda Mackeigan (Brockville, Ont./Brockville C.I.), Jackie Stone (Syracuse, NY/Nottingham), and Amy Eggleston (Ripley, NY/Ripley) never looked back at the annual regatta, as they placed first in both the quarterfinal and semifinal heats to take the gold medal in a time of 6:43.58. Last season, the boat finished fifth in a time of 7:20.04.

Sheralyn Briggs

In the final event of the regatta, the Varsity Eight boat, consisting of coxswain Sheralyn Briggs (St. Catharines, Ont./West Park), Lauren Sexton (Niagara Falls, NY/St Paul), Melina DiCosimo (Niagara Falls, Ont./St Paul), Natalie Pugliese (Niagara Falls, Ont./St Paul), Bridget Yannes (Edgewater Park, NJ/Holy Cross), Corinne Blum (Pittsford, NY/Pittsford Sutherland), Amanda Garbacz (St. Catharines, Ont./Dennis Morris), Paige Baritot (Orchard Park, NY/Buffalo Seminary), and Emilee Norris (Cheektowaga, NY/Cheektowaga) captured its best finish by taking third out of 39 crews. Aftering placing 22nd one season ago, the eight boat finished in a time of 6:42.14 after having led the first 1,500 meters of the race before trailing behind St. Joseph's and UMass.

Kaitlin Buchheit

The final UB boat to qualify to the finals were the Lightweight Four boat of coxswain Kaitlin Buchheit (Amherst, NY/Amherst), Katie Barnum (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendohowa), Emily Clark (North Collins, NY/Lake Shore), Beth Gaworecki (Baldwinsville, NY/C.W. Baker), and Jennifer DeLone (Rochester, NY/Rush-Henrietta), who came up with a last-place finish in the finals of six crews. Their time of 7:51.40 was 20 seconds short of top-seeded Villanova, who finished in 7:32.07.

Kaitlyn Porreca

Coxswain Kaitlyn Porreca (Pendleton, NY/Starpoint), Chandra Hazey (Riverview, NY/Riverview), Joanne Olsen (Niskayuna, NY/Niskayuna), Amanda Grates (Fredonia, NY/Fredonia), and Karen Corey (Kingston, NY/Kingston) made a push for a coveted spot in the final heat of the Varsity Four race, but fell short despite finishing second in the first heat of the event. The Bulls finished fourth in the semifinals in a time of 7:36.41, but only the top three crews were invited to participate in the final race.

Adriane Wotawa-Bergen

38 total crews participated in the Novice Four event, including the UB boat of coxswain Adriane Wotawa-Bergen (Ithaca, NY/Ithaca), Heidi Kenefick (Sauquoit, NY/Sauquoit), Maren Greene (Ann Arbor, MI/Ann Arbor Community), Thandiwe Price (Springfield Gardens, NY/Frank Sinatra), and Diane Passenant (Lake Ronkonkoma, NY/Sachem North). The four boat made it to the semifinals, finishing third in a time of 7:51.14. However, the top two boats in each heat qualify to the finals.

"The whole team did UB proud," head coach Rudy Wieler commented. "The Varsity Eight had never been in the finals and they claimed bronze this time around. 18 kids medalled from Buffalo, and 15 are returning for next year. I think that is very significant."