Oct. 4, 2004

HARTFORD, CT - SHU crews raced in Hartford on Sunday to open the fall season. The Head of the Riverfront Regatta hosted more than 300 crews from four surrounding states in what has become a bigger, more organized and more competitive event than ever before. Under a brilliant blue sky, a cool autumn breeze and a warming sun made the day comfortable for rowers and spectators alike.

High school and masters crews comprised about half the competitors. The Brunswick School, Choate Rosemary Hall, Convent of the Sacred Heart, Greenwich Rowing Club, East Lyme Rowing, Old Lyme R.A, Norwalk River R.A., Lewis. S. Mills H.S., and high schools in Simsbury, Middletown, Glastonbury, Farmington, and Northhampton sent crews as young as 15 yrs. old to battle on the river, while the masters' contingent included an athlete who had been rowing 73 years.

College crews from UCONN, Wesleyan, Williams, Trinity, Smith, Mount Holyoke, Dowling, B.C., Connecticut College, U.S. Coast Guard Academy and URI provided Sacred Heart with ample competition. All of these programs are considerably older and more established than SHU Women's Rowing, but Sacred Heart rowed well and showed that we're up and coming.

The Varsity 8+ raced in the first event of the day against a stiff current and 12 - 15 knot headwind. Boston College, Smith, Trinity, Connecticut College and Williams fielded two boats each, indicating the depth of their rosters, while each of the rest raced their best 8 in this extremely competitive event.

Cox Shelley Solheim, stroke Desiree Johnston, followed by team co-captain Stacey Lyons, Lauren Humphrey, Liz Cameron, Casey Lyth, Erin Nash, Ali Daly, and Meghan Casale rowed for Sacred Heart.

Boston College won the race in a time of 17:50.89, slightly more than three minutes ahead of Sacred Heart's time of 21:03.21. Sacred Heart beat Dowling College by about 8 seconds, but couldn't match the power and speed of the rest of the fleet this day.

SHU's Novice 8+ exceeded high hopes their coaches had for them, placing 5th of ten in their race. The sophomore stern pair, stroke Brittany Turner and Shelley Solheim, were followed by frosh Caitlin Rousseau, sophomore Laurie Ladouceur, frosh Jessica McCarthy, junior Angelica McKessy, and frosh bow pair Gina Baldi and Ashley Nissen. Coxswain Ali Daly described the row as "awesome."

The crew looked strong after 20 minutes of racing as they approached the finish line. Having passed some boats, they were relaxed, confident and clean. UCONN won with a time of 20:02.45, followed by Coast Guard, Trinity A and Trinity C. Sacred Heart finished at 21:11.73, a little more than a minute behind the winner but well ahead of Mount Holyoke, both Smith College boats, Wesleyan and Trinity's B boat.

Sacred Heart's final event of the day, the Varsity 4+, was fielded by every college women's program present. Stroke Sarah Kolb, team co-captain Beth Buco, and novice gold medalists, sophomores Ashley Pratt and Caroline Picknally raced for Sacred Heart.

In a third-year tradition, Casey's parents, Bill and Debbie Lyth, hosted a lavish pasta dinner at their house after the racing.