Two K-State Boats Medal in Sunshine State Invitational

MANHATTAN, Kan. – The K-State women's rowing team came home with two medals after competing in the Sunshine State Invitational on Friday (March 31) and Saturday (April 1) at the Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota, Fla.

The regatta hosted 14 schools, including Big 12 competitors, Kansas and West Virginia.

"We are impressed with how our athletes handled everything. They are continuing to stay competitive even though we have been challenged this season by a lack of water time," head coach Pat Sweeney said. "Because we haven't had water, the only time we've really been able to test lineups and make selections is when we are competing. It's not the ideal way of doing things or preparing, but it's what we have had to work with. They are making the most of it and continuing to push forward."

The Wildcats raced twice this weekend, with each boat competing in heats on Friday and finals on Saturday. The 2v4+ won a gold medal and the 3v8+ took bronze following Saturday's finals.

"The weekend was a good learning experience. Watching from the first day to the second day of racing, we saw multiple crews get faster," Sweeney said. "There was some good racing, especially the tenacity of the 2v4+ and our younger athletes in the third 8."

On Friday, the 2v4+ took third in their heat at 7:36.08. The top two crews from each heat were automatic qualifiers, with the next two fastest times also moving on to the 'A' finals.

"We raced as hard as we could so we could be in the 'A' final," junior Lindsey DeVreugd said. "We knew that if we wanted to hang with the other boats, we would have to clean up some tech from the previous day."

The 2v4+ lineup was freshman coxswain Kiersten Schmalz, Lindsey DeVreugd, sophomores Kendra Hamman and Catie Wood and junior Alyssa Buettner.

"We tried to focus less on our rate and more on our power, being consistent with that and having overall cleaner blades," Schmalz said. "We just had a great mentality going into it (Saturday) and really wanted to medal and prove ourselves, which we did."

The boat went into their race with what DeVreugd described as "an underdog mentality" that helped push them to a first-place finish on Saturday with a time of 7:29.87.

"Overall, the whole boat did a good job of responding to the calls that Schmalz wanted us to make and that allowed us to be in medaling position," said DeVreugd. "The work that we put in the last few weeks allowed us to make that final push to secure first place."

"We have so much potential that we can tap into and are already off to a good start. There's always room to grow and get better, and we are in the mindset to take full advantage of that," Schmalz said.

The 3v8+ finished third in Friday's heats at 6:55.13, securing a spot in Saturday's 'A' finals. The boat consisted of freshmen, coxswain Kennedy Loyd, Ellie Erwin, Bianca Wollmeister, Makenzie Storm, Emma Johnson, Ava Werner, Zoey Whorton, junior McKenna Johnson and freshman Tatum Alexander.

"As a boat we have learned so much but there's still so much room to grow. I am excited to see where we can take it the rest of the season," Storm said.

On Saturday, the 3v8+ came in third during finals, securing a bronze medal with a time of 6:53.76.

"Medaling at this regatta was so exciting. It showed that our hard work in pre-season is paying off and that we are able to compete," Storm said. "I feel like as a boat we were ready to give it our all and work for it as a team."

The 2v8+, consisting of junior coxswain Lauren Plum, sophomore Grace Hendrickson, junior Kaylee Kleinschmit, sophomore Anna Ryan, junior Patricia Hokanson, freshmen Sylvia Cunningham and Grace Hall, sophomore Jayden Brandt and freshman Kay Pakkebier, finished sixth on Friday with a time of 7:11.24. The boat qualified for the 'B' final, taking fourth with a time of 7:04.35.

On Friday the 1v8+ finished seventh in their heat at 6:57.41 qualifying for the 'B' final. The boat consisted of sophomore coxswain Paige Fox, sophomores Gracyn McClain, Jordan Girkin, Rachel Harman, Madison Koller, Madelyn Barrett, senior Madison Jensen, sophomore Symone Simmons, and junior Idallis Shaffer.

"Friday, we started soft, got down on other boats, and didn't make a push to get back with them. We regrouped Friday evening and went into Saturday knowing what we needed to fix," Koller said. "We focused on responding to Fox's calls, making and holding pushes, cleaning up the technique, and overall effort. It was reassuring to see that we can do it when we work together."

The boat shifted their momentum Saturday, cutting ten seconds off Friday's time to place second in their race at 6:47.20.

"This weekend made us aware that we need to make the most of the water time we get and give 110% effort," Koller said. "Our boat has potential. I love the girls in front and behind me, and if we push each other on and off the water, I believe we will see success through the rest of the season."

The 1v4+ came in second place on Friday with a time of 7:28.04 earning a spot in the 'A' final on Saturday morning. The lineup consisted of senior coxswain Kaitlyn Henke, sophomore Neva Roenne, junior Jadyn Greisen and sophomores Emily Stark and Halle Fee. The crew finished seventh on Saturday at 7:29.39.

Looking ahead, the team recognized this weekend will help set them up for the rest of the season.

"We know what we can do and what we can accomplish right now, it's just building on that and doing the best we can each race," Schmalz said.

"Our strength and fitness is good, that's evident by how we are able to row through crews in middle of the race, but we need to improve our technique. That means cleaning up the start, making our finishes more dynamic, and making the most of any water time we can get," Sweeney said. "We know what we need to focus on and we're ready to do the work so that boat speed can continue to come up."

K-State will compete next in the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association (SIRA) on Saturday (April 15) and Sunday (April 16) in Oak Ridge, Tenn.

Sunshine State Invitational
Nathan Benderson Park
Sarasota, Fla.

Friday Heats

Second Varsity 4+ (2v4+)
1. UCF; 7:28.50, 2. Kansas; 7:29.93, 3. K-State; 7:36.08, 4. Miami; 7:47.47, 5. West Virginia; 8:36.05

First Varsity 4+ (1v4+)
1. Kansas; 7:25.59, 2. K-State; 7:28.04, 3. Tulsa; 7:30.39, 4. Jacksonville; 7:31.78, 5. Drexel; 7:40.94, 6. Louisville; 7:50.87, 7. Old Dominion; 8:27.30

Third Varsity 8+ (3v8+)
1. Michigan State 'A'; 6:50.23, 2. Kansas; 6:52.58, 3. K-State; 6:55.13, 4. Jacksonville; 7:04.66, 5. UCF; 7:06.17, 6. Michigan State 'B'; 7:09.75

Second Varsity 8+ (2v8+)
1. Kansas; 6:54.14, 2. Drexel; 6:54.57, 3. Louisville; 6:55.46, 4. Tulsa; 6:58.98, 5. Jacksonville; 7:02.23, 6. K-State; 7:11.24, 7. Old Dominion; 7:29.44

First Varsity 8+ (1v8+)
1. Tulsa; 6:33.80, 2. Louisville; 6:37.20, 3. Drexel; 6:38.99, 4. Kansas; 6:47.84, 5. Old Dominion; 6:52.29, 6. Jacksonville; 6:56.93, 7. K-State; 6:57.41

Saturday Finals

First Varsity 8+ (1v8+) 'B' Final
1. Kansas; 6:45.00, 2. K-State; 6:47.20, 3. Jacksonville; 6:49.30, 4. Old Dominion; 6:52.23, 5. West Virginia; 6:55.99, 6. Stetson; 7:00.92

Second Varsity 8+ (2v8+) 'B' Final
1. Tulsa; 6:44.95, 2. Jacksonville; 6:51.53, 3. West Virginia; 6:55.54, 4. K-State; 7:04.35, 5. Stetson; 7:09.83, 6. Old Dominion; 7:21.94

Third Varsity 8+ (3v8+) 'A' Final
1. Michigan State 'A; :49.32, 2. Kansas; 6:49.62, 3. K-State; 6:53.62, 4. Jacksonville; 6:59.00, 5. Michigan State 'B'; 7:17.12, 6. UCF; 7:23.32

First Varsity 4+ (1v4+) 'A' Final
1. UW Madison 'A'; 7:13.46, 2. Michigan State; 7:18.65, 3. UCF; 7:19.73, 4. Tulsa; 7:23.20, 5. Kansas; 7:24.30, 6. Jacksonville; 7:25.33, 7. K-State; 7:29.39, 8. Miami; 7:37.68

Second Varsity 4+ (2v4+) 'A' Final
1. K-State; 7:29.87, 2. Wisconsin; 7:31.24, 3. Michigan State 'B'; 7:31.87, 4. Michigan State 'A'; 7:32.16, 5. UCF; 7:32.43, 6. Kansas; 7:48.94

K-State lineups:
1v4+ lineup:
Cox: Kaitlyn Henke, Stroke: Neva Roenne, 3. Jadyn Greisen, 2. Emily Stark, Bow: Halle Fee

2v4+ lineup:
Cox: Kiersten Schmalz, Stroke: Lindsey DeVreugd, 3. Kendra Hamman, 2. Catie Wood, Bow: Alyssa Buettner

1v8+ lineup:
Cox: Paige Fox, Stroke: Gracyn McClain, 7. Jordan Girkin, 6. Rachel Harman, 5. Madison Koller, 4. Madelyn Barrett, 3. Madison Jensen, 2. Symone Simmons, Bow: Idallis Shaffer

2v8+ lineup:
Cox: Lauren Plum, Stroke: Grace Hendrickson, 7. Kaylee Kleinschmit, 6. Anna Ryan, 5. Patricia Hokanson, 4. Sylvia Cunningham, 3. Grace Hall, 2. Jayden Brandt, Bow: Kay Pakkebier

3v8+ lineup:
Cox: Kennedy Loyd, Stroke: Ellie Erwin, 7. Bianca Wollmeister, 6. Makenzie Storm, 5. Emma Johnson, 4. Ava Werner, 3. Zoey Whorton, 2. McKenna Johnson, Bow: Tatum Alexander

How to follow the 'Cats: For complete information on the K-State Women's Rowing Team, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Kansas State University Athletics

Two K-State Boats Medal in Sunshine State Invitational

Related News

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Tatum Alexander

Jayden Brandt

Alyssa Buettner

Sylvia Cunningham

Lindsey DeVreugd

Ellie Erwin

Halle Fee

Paige Fox

Jordan Girkin

Jadyn Greisen

Grace Hall

Kendra Hamman

Rachel Harman

Grace Hendrickson

Kaitlyn Henke

Patricia Hokanson

Madison Jensen

Emma Johnson

McKenna Johnson

Kaylee Kleinschmit

Madison Koller

Kennedy Loyd

Gracyn McClain

Kay Pakkebier

Lauren Plum

Neva Roenne

Anna Ryan

Kiersten Schmalz

Idallis Shaffer

Symone Simmons

Emily Stark

Makenzie Storm

Zoey Whorton

Bianca Wollmeister

Catie Wood