Following two days of Homecoming festivities, Sunday provided a day of rest on the Hilltop. But not for Georgetown’s rowing teams, who opened their fall season with the 27th Annual Charlie Butt Scullers’ Head of the Potomac.
The regatta began in 1981 and includes sweep and sculling events. Potomac Boat Club (PBC) played host for the regatta. Founded in 1869, PBC is one of the oldest and most renowned rowing clubs in the District area and serves as a home and training area for world-class competitors and recreational rowers alike.
The Hoyas enjoyed sunny skies as the rowers’ shells hit the water. In the men’s amateur-inclusive club eight race, Georgetown’s “A” boat of Max Mickiewicz, Ben Coyne, Bob Morgan, Phil Goodman, Andrew Federer, Paul Keith, Tom Skomba, Joe Ledvina and John Geager finished first out of eight squads with a time of 14:42.9. The Hoyas ran away with the race, finishing more than a full 40 seconds ahead of the second-place boat from PBC. Georgetown’s “B” boat finished third.
The Hoya men’s open eight finished their race with a time of 14:13.97 with PBC beating the Hoyas by a margin of 10 seconds. The PBC boat was later docked 30 seconds for language, giving Georgetown the victory. In the men’s four race, Georgetown took home a third place finish behind teams from the George Washington Rowing Association and PBC.
On the women’s side, first-year Head Coach Glen Putyrae received a solid effort from the Hoya ladies. Georgetown’s open eight boat of Bevin Reilly, Melissa Horne, Maria Lipperini, Alexis Zink, Erin Carter, Christianne Persenaire, Victoria Koke, Hannah Woit and Morgan McGovern gave the Hoyas their best showing of the day, finishing first out of six entries with a time of 16:15.1.
In the women’s club eight race, Georgetown placed boats in second and third place behind the team from Alexandria Community Rowing. The Thompson Boat Center’s squad took first in the women’s four with the Hoyas finishing with boats in second and sixth place.
The Hoyas are now ready to take their early successes on the Potomac and parlay them into victories in their fall races on rivers across the East Coast. The women’s next meet is Oct. 13 in Philadelphia, Pa. for Navy Day on the Schuylkill River. The men will not race until a week later on Oct. 21 when they compete at the Head of the Charles in Boston, Mass.
