PENNSAUKEN, N.J. – The Women's Rowing Championship featured the First Varsity Four and First Varsity Eight racing in the Grand Final, as the Second Varsity Four and Second Varsity Eight raced in the Petite Final.

Overall as a team, the Raiders placed seventh out of the nine teams in the Patriot League. The 1V4+ earned the highest finish of the day, placing fourth while the 1V8+ placed fifth in their respective bracket. The 2V4+ collected a seventh place finish as the 2V8+ took eighth.

COACH LISTER'S COMMENTS
"I am really pleased with the performance of our team today. They all came away with executing their race plans in their respective finals. I am excited to see growth in one of our team goals of our boats qualifying for the Grand Finals. We had two crews make this goal in the 1V8 and 1V4, and nearly had a third qualify with the 2V4. Noteworthy, our Varsity Four finished off the podium in a fourth place finish, recording one of the highest placements in recent team history. In the Varsity 8, the boat bested its fastest time of the year with a 6:34, just missing the podium by one boat length in a fierce dog fight with MIT and Navy in the last 500 meters. The Patriot League is a collection of teams that are all really competitive and hardworking, and we are really proud of our athletes for stepping into that space and being competitive with their peer teams."

HOW IT HAPPENED

Heats
The 2V4+ opened Colgate's debut at the Patriot League Championship at 8:10 a.m. in the second heat on the Cooper River. The boat raced against four opponents and placed fourth with a time of 8:39.320. Navy took first in 7:53.987, while Georgetown finished second approximately 11 seconds later in 8:05.492. Lehigh finished third to secure the final spot in the Grand Final alongside the top two finishers in the heat. The Raiders will compete in the afternoon session of the Petite Final against Loyola.

Shortly after the 2V4+ race, the 1V4+ competed with Boston U., MIT, and Colgate claiming the top three spots to advance to the Grand Final. Boston U. finished in 7:37.502, followed by MIT in 7:47.146 and the Raiders in 7:49.898, as Colgate outlasted Holy Cross and Loyola in the heat. Colgate will compete against Boston U., MIT, Navy, Georgetown, and Lehigh in the Grand Final for first place.

In the first heat of the 2V8+, the Raiders finished fourth, missing a spot in the Grand Final. Boston U. (6:42.618), Georgetown (6:48.707), and Bucknell (6:57.284) claimed the top three spots to advance. Colgate finished behind the Bison in 7:08.958, while Loyola followed in 7:14.155. The Raiders, Greyhounds, and MIT Engineers will compete in the Petite Final during the early afternoon session.

The 1V8+ closed out the morning session by punching its ticket to the Grand Final. Boston U. took first with a time of 6:39.697. MIT followed approximately seven seconds later in 6:46.930, while Colgate finished third in 6:53.370. The Raiders defeated Lehigh and Loyola to advance to the afternoon final. Colgate will compete against Boston U. and MIT from its initial heat, along with Navy, Bucknell, and Georgetown in the final afternoon race of the day.

To conclude the morning session, the 1V4+ and 1V8+ advanced to the Grand Finals, while the 2V4+ and 2V8+ will compete in the Petite Finals.

Finals
Opening the afternoon session was the 2V4+. The Raiders raced in the Petite Final against Loyola. Colgate surpassed the Greyhounds, finishing in 8:33.768, 34.947 seconds faster than its opponent. The 2V4+ finished atop the Petite Final while placing seventh overall.

Next on deck for the Raiders was the 2V8+, where Colgate competed against MIT and Loyola. MIT maintained an edge over Colgate, crossing the finish line first in the Petite Final in 6:55.916. Seven seconds later, the Raiders crossed the line in 7:03.149, followed by the Greyhounds in 7:15.816. Colgate's 2V8+ finished eighth overall.

The 1V4+, the first Colgate boat to compete in the Grand Final, made waves and earned a fourth-place finish — the Raiders' highest placement of the day. Coxed by Olivia Larsen, the Raiders crossed the finish line in 7:36.787. The medalists ahead of them were Boston U. (7:16.549), Georgetown (7:24.421), and Navy (7:28.541). The Raiders finished ahead of Lehigh and MIT in the Grand Final.

The final event of the Patriot League Championship featured the 1V8+. In a closely contested race, the top five finishers were separated by just eight seconds. Boston U. took gold in 6:26.042, followed by Bucknell with silver in 6:28.018 and MIT with bronze in 6:30.845. Navy crossed the line shortly after in fourth place at 6:31.560, while the Colgate Raiders finished fifth in 6:34.802. Georgetown rounded out the event in sixth place with a time of 6:44.645.

The Raiders concluded the championship with 151.5 team points, earning a seventh-place finish overall.

UP NEXT
Colgate will have a little break before they head to England to compete in the Reading Amateur Regatta on June 13-14 and Women's Henley June 19-21. 

2026 Patriot League Women's Rowing Championship Results
1. Boston University - 319.5 
2. Bucknell - 242
3. Navy - 209
4. MIT - 190
5. Georgetown - 183.5
6. Holy Cross - 157.5
7. Colgate - 151.5
8. Lehigh - 108
9. Loyola Maryland - 36

2026 Patriot League Women's Rowing Major Awards
Boat of the Year: Boston University First Varsity 8+
Coaching Staff of the Year: Boston University

Colgate Lineups

Women's Varsity Eight
Katherine Metcalf (C), Marie Clausen, Rebecca Carew, Elena Myatt, Ellie Givertz-Steel, Catherine Elliott, Sarah Slember, Sophia Cerroni, Stella Curcio

Women's Second Varsity Eight
Victoria Reale (C), Kate Lawrence, Sophia Dranchak, Elizabeth Hoffert, Lael Gott, Sarah Beth Sandifer, Tessa Weber, Claire Chesnut, Grace Ciaravino

Women's Varsity Four
Olivia Larsen (C), Aubrey Short, Hope Moriarty, Grace Boyle, Chloe Sernick 

Women's Second Varsity Four
Helena Cerutti (C), Adyson Duval, Sarah Regner, Talya Djemil, Morgan McClutchy