CAMDEN, N.J.- The Gordon College women's rowing team kicked off their spring regatta cycle at the Knecht Cup in Camden, NJ, with competitive finishes in the DIII 4+, Varsity 1x, and the Varsity 4x. Racing spanned the weekend; heats on Saturday saw Mara Sell coming in a comfortable second in her heat and the first and second varsity fours advancing into the grand and petite finals, respectively. The first varsity boat, coxed by Carley Hoover and stroked by Samantha Hansen, squeezed their way to a 2/10ths of a second finish ahead of Case Western Reserve to qualify for finals with the second fastest overall time, and the second boat, coxed by Shelby Smyrl and stroked by Mara Sell, rounded out their heat to take the last qualifying spot in the petites. 

Sunday's conditions were windier, producing slower times in general across the board.  Racing began with Mara Sell finishing a tight sixth in the grand final, three seconds behind the sculler from MIT. Freshmen Quinn Arico and Taylor Sargent battled out in the petite final for the Women's 2x, finishing fourth behind Franklin Pierce, Monmouth, and Lafayette. As racing transitioned to bigger boats, the second four of Shelby Smyrl, Tillie Hutton, Kaitlyn Carlsen, Mackenzie Peck and Mara Sell finished fifth in their petite final, ahead of the "C" crew from Case Western Reserve. In the grand final, MSOE (who bested the Scots by a full 10 seconds in heats) crossed the line first with a time of 8:54.85, followed tightly by both Case Western Reserve and Gordon's "A" crew of Isabella D'Agostino, Sarah Petrenko, Emily Nerger, and Samantha Hansen. Gordon closed the gap on Milwaukee, finishing with a 9:02.37 to take home the bronze behind Case Western Reserve. 

The Scots wrapped up the day with the Women's Varsity 4x, who brought home a silver medal comfortably ahead of third place finishers Bryn Mawr and behind the crew from Oklahoma City University. 

The Scots race next on April 18 on the Charles at the Women's Beanpot against Sacred Heart, BU, MIT, and Harvard-Radcliffe. 
 

Saturday Results
Women's 1X Heat Two: Mara Sell – 10:02.11
Women's 2X Heat Two: Emily Nerger, LilyAnna Hopkins – 9:24.73
Women's Varsity Four Division III Heat One: Tillie Hutton, Mara Sell, Kaitlyn Carlsen, MacKenzie Peck, Shelby Smyrl – 9:42.68
Women's Varsity Four Division III Heat Two: Samantha Hansen, Sarah Petrenko, Emily Nerger, Isabella D'Agostino, Carly Hoover – 8:31.37
 
Sunday Results
Women's 1X Final: Mara Sell – 10:51.22 (6th)
Women's 2X Final: Emily Nerger, LilyAnna Hopkins – 10:43.74 (4th)
Women's Varsity Four Division III Petite Final: Tillie Hutton, Mara Sell, Kaitlyn Carlsen, MacKenzie Peck, Shelby Smyrl – 10:01.96 (4th)
Women's Varsity Four Division III Final: Samantha Hansen, Sarah Petrenko, Emily Nerger, Isabella D'Agostino, Carly Hoover – 9:02.37 (3rd)
Women's Varsity Quad Final: LilyAnna Hopkins, Taylor Sargent, Quinn Arico, Sarah Petrenko – 9:08.12 (2nd)