SARASOTA, Fla. - [Championship Central / Results] - After claiming the program's first-ever conference title last season, the fifth-ranked Embry-Riddle women's rowing team successfully defended its Sunshine State Conference crown by winning the 2023 SSC Championship on Friday at Nathan Benderson Park. The Eagles collected 18 points to win by seven over RV Barry and Tampa. No. 7 Rollins placed fourth, eight points behind ERAU.
The competition began at 9 a.m. with Alexis Mathis (coxswain), Helena Schmidt, Aria Moses, Alexandria Fife-Winslow, and Briella Goldenberg in the Varsity Four boat, the same lineup the Eagles used at SIRA. In a major upset, Tampa won the race to record the program's first-ever win at the conference championship, but the Blue and Gold came home with a solid second-place showing with a time of 7:50.3, just five seconds behind the Spartans. It was the second-fastest time this season in a 2,000 meter race by the Varsity Four boat.
In Varsity Eight, Megan Byrne (coxswain), Shelby Ernst, Kendra Sander, Soleil Edwards, Sofia Lorenzini, Elise Dezotell, Alexandra Weilert, Veronika Zdrazil, and Kristen Vigna made program history by becoming the first Eagle-powered shell to win the event at the SSC Championship. Embry-Riddle used its fastest time of the year in a 2,000 meter race to stop the clock at 6:48.8, just over 12 seconds faster than the second-place Buccaneers.
Courtesy of ERAU Athletic Communications