Ridley rowers ready for regatta
The Ridley College senior women’s quad of Anna Barrington, Charlotte Pieckenhagen, Talia Nixon and Sydney Swick should have a strong chance to medal at the 75th Canadian Secondary Schools Rowing Association Regatta on Henley Island this weekend. Photo by: RIDLEY COLLEGE
Ridley rowers plan to make up for lost time this weekend at the 75th Canadian Secondary Schools Rowing Association Regatta on Henley Island.
Multiple crews, both girls and boys, are entered in a variety of events. Racing begins Friday and continues Saturday. Finals will be held Sunday beginning at 8 a.m.
“I’m most excited to see kids go down the course,” boys coach Dereck Schwandt said. “We have shots (for medals) in a lot of places. We have a lot of boats that are doing some good things.”
Girls coach Siobhan McLaughlin said anticipation is high.
“Everybody is super excited,” she said. “We have a ton of students who were going to row and race in Grade 10 and that whole season got cancelled and last year too, so this is really their first opportunity in three years.”
Expectations vary according to the crew, McLaughlin said.
“We’ve got lots of crews this year,” she said. “For some this is their first season rowing. It’s kind of a rebuilding year. Everybody has lost the last two years so it’s getting our team back together and attending as many regattas as we could. Our more senior crews have rowed a little bit longer so we have higher expectations.”
The senior women’s quad of Anna Barrington, Charlotte Pieckenhagen, Talia Nixon and Sydney Swick should have a strong chance to medal after placing second at the Stotesbury Cup Regatta in Philadelphia.
Schwandt is also thrilled to be back on the water after a two-year absence due to the COVID pandemic.
“It’s pretty cool. The season has been pretty exciting,” he said. “I remember one day bringing my coach boat back to the dock area and the whole coach boat area was filled and not having the space for mine.
“It was cool to have kids back on the water and to see that everyday.”
Schwandt said there has been a steep learning curve with so many novice competitors.
“We’re a little bit out of shape in terms of planning and organizing these sorts of things and the kids are as well. It’s been a little bit tricky to ramp that back up,” he said. “We have a larger percentage of novices than we usually have so there is a lot of learning that is required, not only on the water, but in terms of moving and carrying equipment and getting into habits and routines with the kids.”
Boys crews entered are: Victor Kie, Nicholas Man, Gerardo Lopez Morelos Zaragoza, Caillen Pieckenhagen, Ethan Postma, Gabriel Lopez, Sergio Poveda Carranza, Elliott Leal, Julian Sapounzi and Benji Pacecca who comprise a novice men’s 8+ as well as splitting into a junior men’s 4x+ and novice men’s 4x+; Shane Keagan, Calum Murphy, Fernando Vaca Castello and Mahmoud Radwan make up a senior men’s 4x as well as a senior men’s 2x and senior men’s lightweight 2x; Quinn Kraus and Benjamin Oabel are entered in the junior men’s 2x and senior men’s 2x; Adrian Sapounzi, Cola He, Ben Bradford-Andrew, Roman Sapounzi and Liam McFarland are entered in the junior men’s 66 kg 4x+/novice men’s 72kg 4x+; Autumn Crowe and Sascha Jansen-Rudan are entered in the mixed 2x/womens 1x and men’s lightweight 1x.
Girls crews entered are: Autumn Crowe in the senior women’s 1x; Naomi Dunn and Ashley Billes in the senior women’s 63kg 2x; Ashley Billes in the junior women’s 1x; Sharlize Price, Georgia Sharpe, Jade Postma, TJ Goertz, Presley Daschuk, Hillary Taylor, Maria Shea, Avery Faladeau and Nina Wu in the novice women’s 8+; Charlotte Pieckenhagen, Sydney Swick, Talia Nixon, Anna Barrington in the senior women’s 4x; Sharlize Price, Georgia Sharpe, Jade Postma, TJ Goertz, Presley Daschuk in the junior women’s 4x+; Celine Chan, Hillary Taylor, Maria Shea, Avery Faladeau, Nina Wu in the novice women 4x+; Charlotte Pieckenhagen, Sydney Swick in the junior women’s 2x; Teresa Gentes, Ines Ahrazem Valladolid, Mehr Nisa (Mehri) Bokhari, Jiaya (Jade) Li, Lexie Thompson-Ferrusi in the novice women’s 63kg 4x+; Teresa Gentes, Charlotte Langlois, Ainsley Lind, Yiran (Raina) Wang, Crystal Gao in the junior women’s 59kg 4x+; Teresa Gentes, Ines Ahrazem Valladolid, Mehr Nisa (Mehri) Bokhari, Ainsley Lind, Lexie Thompson-Ferrusi, Jiaya (Jade) Li, Charlotte Langlois, Yiran (Raina) Wang, Crystal Gao in the junior women’s 63kg 8+ and Talia Nixon, Anna Barrington in the senior women’s W2-.
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