K-State Rowing Participates in Lone Fall Competition

MANHATTAN, Kan. – The K-State women's rowing team competed in their lone race of the fall on Sunday (October 26) at the Head of the Kansas hosted by Kansas at Burcham Park in Lawrence, Kan. The Wildcats raced against familiar competitors Creighton and Tulsa as well.

"This weekend was a good opportunity for our team to get on the water and compete against some strong competition," head coach Kennedy Felice said. "Each race was a chance to put together things we've been focusing on throughout the fall. Our team is young this year, but we have a lot of potential to get fitter and go faster.

"We know what work we need to do to prepare for the spring and we're looking forward to seeing what we can accomplish with the rest of this year."

Competition was split into a morning and an afternoon session where each boat raced approximately 4,500-meter sessions in a head race format. K-State competed as a 1v8+ and 2v8+ in the first session, then broke the 8s down into 4s for the afternoon session, competing as a 1v4+, 2v4+ and 3v4+. K-State also raced a novice eight (N8+), in the second session.

"This weekend was a good chance for our team to be competitive and gauge what we need to work on moving forward," senior Lorelei Harris said. "Overall, the weekend was great learning experience- this was the first fall race for many girls, so it was fun to see them race it."

"I learned a lot from the races this weekend," sophomore Karlee Horyna said. "Being in a boat with experienced racers is great opportunity to learn and help move the program forward in the next few years."

In the first race, the 1v8+ came in 5^th place at 16:23.57. Racing in that same session, the Cats 2v8+ finished with a time of 17:06.91.

"I felt strong going into this weekend," Horyna said. "Our coaches prepared us and as athletes we knew that going in. My big take away from this race was to row strong and confident because we are set up for success. Our boat stayed calm and together, even in the wind and rain. We were connected the whole race and really pushed in the last 500 meters."

Competing in the afternoon, the N8+ finished at 17:58.16. In the same session, the 1v4+ finished at 18:08.05, the 2v4+ at 18:53.18 and the 3v4+ at 19:16.97.

"Moving forward we are going to continue pushing it during practice so we can be fitter and stronger as we prepare for winter camp," Harris said. "As a team our goal is to medal at Big 12s, utilizing every chance we get on the water to improve will be a significant factor in accomplishing this goal. I'm excited to see how improve between now and the spring season."

"There is still work to be done," Horyna said. "But our team has so much potential. We have such a great support system. We had parents, friends, family, teammates, and alumni lining the shore at the finish line. Everyone shows up and shows out for our team."

K-State will conduct a winter training camp prior to the spring season starting in March 2026.

"We want to thank Andy Derrick and his staff for hosting this race. It was a good weekend for us. We learned a lot as a team and this helped us confirm what we need to do next to get to where we want to be," Felice said. "We have a great group of athletes, and the team is stepping up more every week. We know there is still work to be done but we're moving in the right direction."

Head of the Kansas
Burcham Park
Lawrence, Kan.

Flight One
1. Tulsa 1v8+; 15:34.6, 2. Kansas 1v8+; 15:35.87, 3. Tulsa 2v8+; 15:41.97, 4. Kansas 2v8+; 16:13.33, 5. K-State 1v8+; 16:23.57, 6. Kansas 3v8+; 16:29.47, 7. Creighton 1v8+; 16:36.02,
8. Tulsa 3v8+; 16:56.48, 9. Kansas 3v8+; 16:56.65, 10. K-State 2v8+; 17:06.91, 11. Creighton 2v8+; 17:47.30, 12. Kansas 4+H; 18:27.74, 13. Kansas 4+G; 18:31.30, 14. Creighton 4+D; 19:24.01,
15. Creighton 4+E; 21:18.76

Flight Two
1. Tulsa 4+A; 17:01.89, 2. Kansas 1v8+; 17:07.61, 3. Kansas N8+; 17:14.49, 4. Kansas 4+B; 17:14.97,  5. Kansas 4+A; 17:23.36, 6. Tulsa 4+B; 17:44.56, 7. Creighton 4+A; 17:55.06,
8. K-State N8+; 17:58.16, 9. Kansas 4+C; 18:05.13, 10. K-State 4+A; 18:08.05, 11. Kansas 4+F; 18:30.12, 12. Tulsa 4+C; 18:35.03, 13. Tulsa 4+D; 18:44.13, 14. Kansas 4+D; 18:50.45, 15. K-State 4+B; 18:53.18, 16. Kansas 4+E; 18:53.38, 17. Tulsa 4+E; 19:07.85, 18. Creighton 4V8+; 19:12.87,
19; K-State 4+C; 19:16.97, 20. Creighton 4+B; 19:29.24, 21. Creighton 4+C; 19:37.61,
22. Creighton 5V8+; 19:40.92

-- k-statesports.com --

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 X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.

Players Mentioned

Lorelei Harris

Karlee Horyna

Players Mentioned

Lorelei Harris

Karlee Horyna

Kansas State University Athletics