HADLEY, Mass. – Amherst College hosted Massachusetts Maritime, Fairfield, Mt. Holyoke, Smith, and the University of Connecticut men’s rowing. Fielding a very young squad with one female finalist and no male seniors, the crew team's first race of the season came with a learning curve as the Buccaneers finished last in each race.

 

"We saw great rowing conditions Saturday," remarked Alex Machi, Head Men's & Women's Crew Coach. "The mighty Connecticut River was on its best behavior, the water being relatively calm, and clear of the floating logs and branches we normally have to dodge this time of year. Temperatures were cool but not uncomfortably so, and the sun shone brightly for much of the day. Best of all, we had a great group of parents join us who, typical for MMA families, put out a wonderful tailgate for the athletes after racing was completed."

 

In the women's varsity four, senior Brianna Caissie was the only upper class rower, with three sophomores and a first-year. Racing against Fairfield and Amherst, who finished 1.3 seconds apart, the Buccaneer women came in a respectable 1:41 later. The results were similar for the first men's varsity quad, which featured three juniors and two underclassmen. The second varsity boat had two freshman, a sophomore, and two juniors, coming in 43 second behind UConn in third. Fairfield swept all three races. The men's novice four saw important development for five youngies in their first university race, finishing fourth of four. It was also the first mean for Assistant Coach Maura Flanagan, who took the lead helping the boats get on and off the water.

 

"As you can see from our times, there were not many close finishes yesterday for our rowers," explained Machi. "For most of our cadets, their winter schedule just isn’t conducive to training for crew. However, we generally improve dramatically during the course of the season and we plan to be competitive in future racing."

 

Next week, crew will head to Orleans, Mass. for the Orleans Sweeps and Sculls. In the meantime, stay tuned to www.mmabucs.com for all the latest Buccaneer news.

 

Lineups for Saturday’s racing and results by event:

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WV4+ (Women’s Varsity Four with coxswain)

Bow – Patria ‘Cat’ Swan ‘20

2-seat – Hana Haskell ‘21

3-seat – Paige Decker ‘20

Stroke – Brianna Caissie ‘18

Coxswain – McKenzie Hartman ‘20

 

Fairfield - 1st - 7:49.4

Amherst - 2nd - 7:50.7

Maritime - 3rd - 9:31.8

 

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MV4+ (Men’s Varsity Four with coxswain)

 

M2V4+ (Men’s Second Varsity Four with coxswain)

 

MN4+ (Men’s Novice Four with coxswain)