Syracuse Places 11th at NCAA Championship

Sunday, June 2

Bethel, OH

8 am

Syracuse University

NCAA Championship - Finals

Photo by: Tracey Edson

6/2/2024 4:24:00 PM | Women's Rowing

The Orange placed 11th at the 2024 NCAA Rowing Championship, marking the second-best national championship performance in program history. In 2021 Syracuse finished a program-best 10th at the NCAA Championship. Syracuse's varsity eight took eighth, the varsity four placed 12th and the second varsity eight finished 13th at the national championship regatta at East Fork/Lake Harsha in Bethel, Ohio.

"The varsity eight was a great way to finish the regatta for us, they had their best race on the last day, as did the second varsity eight," said head coach Luke McGee. "And the four did a nice job in their opening race getting to the A/B semifinal. Everyone had a good performance at some point during the weekend.

"I feel so much gratitude, especially for the senior class and the fifth years who came back for an extra year. They were really instrumental in moving the program forward in a real positive way. They put the program on their back and they are leaving it in a stronger place than they found it which is a great legacy to have and a challenge for the people who are coming back to see if they can continue to move it forward. There has been a lot of hard work by the coaching staff and the student-athletes so it is super rewarding. It is a great year. Obviously to win the ACC Championship for the first time in program history is huge. It was a massive goal for us for years, so to finally achieve that is a fantastic accomplishment. And now there are bigger goals in front of us, as it should be."

The eighth place finished for the varsity eight matches the second-best result in Syracuse history. The 2001 varsity eight finished sixth and last year's varsity eight took eighth. The Orange covered the course in 6:20.384, just one second behind California (6:19.238) and ahead of Michigan (6:20.834), Pennsylvania (6:21.446), Ohio State (6:21.654) and Yale (6:26.438). Coxswain Caileigh Grimes, stroke Emmie Frederico, Ellie-Kate Hutchinson, Alena Criss, Zoe Acosta, Kamile Kralikaite, India Aikens, Aphrodite Gioulekas and bow Olivia Bachert make up the varsity eight.

The second varsity eight won the C final to capture 13th place at the championship regatta. It is the best 2V8 finish since 2021 when the Orange took 11th. Syracuse covered the 2,000-meter course in 6:38.430, beating Rutgers (6:39.564), Duke (6:42.843), Indiana (6:44.815), Gonzaga (6:51.444) and Boston University (6:55.149). Coxswain April Serrano guided the boat that includes stroke Elizabeth Vogt, Kaitlyn Dennis, Alice McNeill, Lena Radke, Aicha Abdelaziz, Charlotte Ebel, Grace Loveridge and Mae Sweeney.

Syracuse's varsity four also posted the best Orange finish since 2021, taking 12th. In 2021, Syracuse's V4 placed 11th, which is tied for the best showing in program history. Syracuse covered the course in 7:25.334. Michigan won the varsity four petite final in 7:13.916 followed by Brown (7:16.342), California (7:17.558), Rutgers (7:18.372) and Pennsylvania (7:23.156). Syracuse's lineup included coxswain Chloe Van de Meulebroecke, stroke Sarah Haney, Lauren Coop, Minaya Bishop and bow Haley Uliasz.

The National Championship regatta is the fourth in a row and the seventh in the last eight national championship regattas (2016, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024; no championship was held in 2020 due to COVID-19) for Syracuse. The 2024 Atlantic Coast Conference champions earned the league's automatic bid and were one of three ACC schools, along with Virginia and Duke, in the 22-team field at the 2024 NCAA Championship. Head coach Luke McGee has guided the team to the NCAA Championship regatta in each of the last three seasons. The Orange finished 10th in 2021, 17th in 2022 and 13th last season.

NCAA Championship Finals Results
June 2, 2024

Varsity 8 (Petite Final)
1. California (8:19.238)
2. Syracuse (6:20.384)
3. Michigan (6:20.834)
4. Penn (6:21.446)
5. Ohio State (6:21.654)
6. Yale (6:26.438)

Second Varsity 8 (C final)
1. Syracuse (6:38.430)
2. Rutgers (6:39.564)
3. Duke (6:42.843)
4. Indiana (6:44.815)
5. Gonzaga (6:51.444)
6. Boston University (6:55.149)

Varsity 4 (Petite Final)
1. Michigan (7:13.916)
2. Brown (7:16.342)
3. California (7:17.558)
4. Rutgers (7:18.372)
5. Pennsylvania (7:23.156)
6. Syracuse )7:25.334).

Varsity 8
Coxswain Caileigh Grimes
Stroke Emmie Frederico
7 Ellie-Kate Hutchinson
6 Alena Criss
5 Zoe Acosta
4 Kamile Kralikaite
3 India Aikens
2 Aphrodite Gioulekas
Bow Olivia Bachert

Second Varsity 8
Coxswain April Serrano
Stroke Elizabeth Vogt
7 Kaitlyn Dennis
6 Alice McNeill
5 Lena Radke
4 Aicha Abdelaziz
3 Charlotte Ebel
2 Grace Loveridge
Bow Mae Sweeney

Varsity 4
Coxswain Chloe Van de Meulebroecke
Stroke Sarah Haney
3   Lauren Coop
2 Minaya Bishop
Bow Haley Uliasz

Spares
Maddy Gisby
Lea Dahn
Isabella DeSantis

SYRACUSE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
1997          Varsity 8 at-large invitation (did not place)
2000           Varsity 8 at-large invitation (9th place finish)
2001           Varsity 8 at-large invitation (6th place finish)
2002           Team at-large invitation (12th place overall)
2005           Varsity 8 invited (16th place)
2016           Team at-large invitation (13th place overall)
2017           Team at-large invitation (13th place overall
2018           Team at-large invitation (16th place overall)
2020          No Championship due to COVID-19
2021           Team at-large invitation (10th place overall – best team finish in program history)
2022           Team at-large invitation (17th place overall)
2023           Team at-large invitation (13th place overall)
2024          ACC Champion (automatic qualifier)

The NCAA Rowing champion is determined by total points with points assigned based on the finish in each race. The first-place finisher in the First Varsity Eight will receive 66 points with each subsequent finisher collecting three fewer points – 63 for second, 60 for third, etc. The Second Varsity Eight winner will earn 44 points with each successive finisher collecting two fewer points - 42 points for second, 40 points for third, etc. and the Fours winner will receive 22 points, with the runner-up earning 21 points, third receiving 20 points, etc. Ties will be broken based on the teams' result in the First Eight.

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