PHILADELPHIA, PA - The Iona College men's rowing team traveled to the Dad Vail Championships this weekend, with three of the squad's five crews reaching the semifinals, a first in program history. The Dad Vail Regatta attracts over 115 colleges and is considered the national championship for small and mid-major schools.
The varsity four of Ryan Dronzek, Ernest Stinebrickner, Thomas McNulty, Brandon O'Sullivan, and coxswain Kristen Stramka led off the weekend against local rival Fordham, Marietta, Minnesota, Wentworth, and Washington U. but was unable to finish second or better to advance from the opening round.
"This crew is young but they will need to improve technically and athletically in order to be relevant at future championship competitions," said men's coach John Boyd.
The lightweight four of senior Rich Buchheit, junior Ryan Harding, sophomore Brian Fairfield, junior Nicholas Adams and coxswain Monica Jesby was able to knock off Chicago and the College of New Jersey to earn the program's fourth straight semifinal appearance. As the field narrowed from 28 to 18 crews the racing got much faster and the Gaels were unable to keep pace and continue advancing with the likes of Oklahoma City and M.I.T., eventual gold and bronze medalists respectively.
"The last few years our lightweights have been good enough to not be slow but not good enough to be fast at the Dad Vail," said Boyd. "If current and future Gaels wish to be competitive in this difficult event then they must realize a 6:50 erg score won't cut it beyond high school."
The novice four of freshman Andrew Carley, freshman Camden Chiasson, freshman Matt Sullivan, freshman Connor Galvin and coxswain Carmine Corica bested crews from Northwestern, American, and Grand Valley State to reach the semifinal for the first time since 2008. In the semifinal round it would be two crews from New York State, Colgate and Maritime, that would prove to be too strong for the young Gaels. Although they lacked the strength needed to send them to the grand final, finishing 11th of 42 entrants was a fine consolation to the crew.
The highlight of the regatta came in the pair event. Seniors Christopher Palma and Evan Johnson, who made the grand final in this event last year but were disqualified for interference, waited 12 months for their chance at redemption.
"Last year these guys were good but learned an important and heartbreaking lesson," said Boyd. "It's not everyday in collegiate athletics where you get a second chance. This year they learned more about training and what it means to race instead of simply pulling hard."
To get back into the grand final they would first have to go through heats and semifinals. They posted the third fastest time in the heats eliminating new rowing program St. John Fisher and MAAC foe Manhattan. In the semifinal, the Gaels were able to again advance to the grand final by defeating Drexel, High Point, Maritime, and Brandeis.
As the Maroon and Gold lined up for the grand final and final race of their collegiate careers the weather dramatically shifted from calm to a stiff headwind.
"We were seeded in Lane 5 for the final which is a great place to be when the wind starts blowing because Peter's Island in the final 450m provides much needed protection.", said Boyd.
The race itself wasn't without its drama. 500 meters into the race, Iona caught a crab which allowed Clarkson to seize control. By 750m the Gaels were still very much in the race and crossed the line in second place and earned the medal that slipped through their grasp a year ago. A silver medal this year is Iona's third Dad Vail medal in seven years and sixth in this event since 1982.
By day's end, 12 of 24 athletes on the men's roster experienced a Dad Vail semi-final or better.
"We are going to build on this team performance next season," said Boyd.
