Best. Showing. Ever.
Bainbridge crew teams made a clean sweep of the competition at the Brentwood Regatta on Vancouver Island this past weekend, and the rowing club made history with several first-ever wins in the regatta.
Bainbridge won three medals on Saturday, and another five on Sunday.
Bainbridge Head Coach Tim Goss said the team’s showing was its best performance ever, and the team finished sixth out of 36 teams in the regatta.
By comparison, Bainbridge came in eighth last year and was 10th in 2011.
In a pre-race pep talk, Varsity Boys Coach Bruce Beall told the high school Varsity Boys 8, “Let’s go make history.”
And they did just that, winning bronze medals for Bainbridge Island and placing highest among the U.S. crew teams in that event.
The four lightweight boys from that same boat later rowed to a first-place finish, coming in ahead of Pocock by a boat length with Lakeside at a distant third.
“This is the first Bainbridge boys varsity to win an Open A-level varsity final ever at Brentwood,” Beall said.
But there was much more for the Bainbridge rowers to celebrate.
It was also the first time the Bainbridge novice boys have won a Brentwood trophy: The Novice B Boys 8+ won first place in one of the last races of the weekend, pulling ahead of Vancouver College and Green Lake Rowing Club.
“They entered the race with a new strategy and fought with their trademark feistiness,” said Novice Boys Coach Emma.
The girls teams also proved they were in it to win and did just that in several races.
The varsity girls showed gutsy racing in challenging winds. They earned a coveted entry at the prestigious Windermere Cup opening day regatta on Saturday, May 4 by placing second in the High School 8 behind a fast Holy Names Academy.
The Bainbridge girls JV 4+ showed lots of spirit and placed second, less than 3/100ths of a second behind the Green Lake crew in an exciting race.
Bainbridge novice girls celebrated a best-ever Brentwood performance with medals in three events, including a commanding first-ever win in the Novice Girls B 8+ event where they beat out Holy Names Academy and Everett Rowing.
Another first-ever medal performance occurred in the Novice Girls A 4+ race, where the Bainbridge crew brought home the bronze.
A repeat of the win in the Novice Girls A 8+ from 2012 proved to be too big to ask, however, but the Bainbridge Island Rowing girls showed their tenacity by taking silver over a Green Lake crew that had beaten them in the heats the day before.
“This was Bainbridge Island Rowing’s best performance as a team at the Brentwood Regatta,” Coach Goss said.
“Bainbridge Island Rowing raced in 22 heats, advancing to finals in 15 of those races and medaling in eight of those finals,” he said.
Varsity Girls Coach Barb Trafton added, “Brentwood is a great opportunity to race against the best programs in the Pacific Northwest.”
Brentwood Regatta – Bainbridge Winners
VARSITY A LIGHTWEIGHT BOYS 4+, First place (Gold Medal): Nick Entress, Alex Derry, Keegan Dymoke, Thomas Musselwhite, TimmyTaylor (coxswain).
NOVICE GIRLS B 8+, First place (Gold): Tina Petersen, Jemma Blazina, Faith Eckford-Prossor, Maddie Haines, Rosie Brown, Julia Denlinger, Anne Christina Ruud, Abby Leigh, Chrina Munn (c)
NOVICE BOYS B 8+, First place (Gold): Cole Sander, Connor Martin, John Michael Najarian, Zander Welch, Jack Kramer, Lars Erickson, Talbot Miller, Michael Aber, Isaac Holloway (c)
JV GIRLS 4+, Second place (Silver): Kylie Van Aken, Lexi Krueger, Carly Millerd, Eryn McCassey, Natassja Haught (c)
NOVICE GIRLS A 4+, Third place (Bronze): Tica Drury, Elsa Godtfredsen, Nanna Christensen, Mira Rosenkotz, Aubrie Rice (c)
NOVICE GIRLS A 8+, Third place (Silver: Tina Petersen, Elsa Godtfredsen, Faith Eckford-Prossor, Maddie Haines, Rosie Brown, Julia Denlinger, Nanna Christensen, Abby Leigh, Sydney Gibbs (coxswain)
HIGH SCHOOL VARSITY GIRLS A 8+, Second Place (Silver): Hanna Christofferson, Samantha Dore, Justeen Komok, Elisabeth Chun, Sydney Severson, Hannah Schneiderman, Katrina Kerrigan, Ena Nimb, Maia McNett (c)
HIGH SCHOOL VARSITY BOYS A 8+, Third place (Bronze): Morgan Spray, Alex Derry, Nick Entress, Walker Hauptman, Harrison King, Bryson Allen, Keegan Dymoke, Thomas Musselwhite, Shaine McMahon (c)
