Conditions Were Tough, Tar Heels Were Tougher at Murphy Cup

Saturday, March 23

Cherry Hill, N.J.

9:00 AM

North Carolina

Murphy Cup

The Tar Heel varsity eight was second in the Murphy Cup grand final.

March 23, 2019 | Women's Rowing

Complete Results

By: UNC Athletic Communications

The North Carolina rowing team competed at the Murphy Cup on Saturday, battling high winds and changing conditions to earn three silver medals and a bronze.

Racing on the Cooper River in Cherry Hill, N.J., UNC's varsity eight and third varsity eight both placed second in their finals and the second varsity eight was third. Both of the Tar Heel fours qualified for finals, but the races had to be canceled because of windy conditions. However, the varsity four earned a silver medal based on its time in the heats.

"I am so incredibly proud of how our team handled the conditions at the Murphy Cup yesterday, during our row over, and the race today," UNC coach Sarah Haney said. "There were incredibly high winds that made racing difficult. We knew going in that the teams that handled the conditions the best, not only with the wind, but also being able to be flexible with any changes of the schedule, would be the team had had the best chance to perform well."

The Carolina varsity eight won its heat in 6:55.39 to advance to the grand final, where the Tar Heels finished in 6:44.82 to take silver. Penn was first in 6:42.79.

The UNC second varsity eight won its heat in 7:03.81, almost 23 seconds ahead of second-place Georgetown. In the grand final the Tar Heels were third in 6:54.09, behind Penn and Drexel.

The varsity four was second in its heat, finishing in 7:59.50 just behind Temple. The second varsity eight also qualified for the would-be finals with a third-place finish in its heat, crossing in 8:39.95.

The third varsity eight raced only a final, and the Tar Heels won silver in that, finishing in 7:21.84.

"This regatta was a great chance for us to see where we are against some good competition," Haney said. "Having heats and then finals in the same day is good practice for us to work on advancing from our heats and then performs well when needed in the final.

"Our team is in a really good place and is continuing to improve each day. We like having the races today to give us more experience before we head into some tough competition tomorrow. Each time we go down the race course, we learn more about who we are and gain confidence as we move forward."

UNC races again Sunday on the Cooper River, this time in the Cooper River Sprints. The two events are staged in the same place but are unaffiliated.

North Carolina lineups

Varsity 8:
Madeline Lavin (coxswain), Maria Marroquin, Kelly Williams, Bridget Tarnowski, Lauren Ferner, Katie Bell, Paige Colpo, Julianne Peters, Sally Stanley
2^nd Varsity 8:
Ashley Lim (coxswain), Sara Zetterberg, Elizabeth Farley, Alex Davis, Alessandra De Vito, Amanda Perez, Margaret High, Abby Hudspeth, Caleigh Sewell.
Varsity 4
Sofia Triana (coxswain), Melanie Hussey, Liz Finnessy, Katie McMahon, Elizabeth Mitchell
2^nd Varsity 4
Lara King (coxswain), Zoe Rose, Lindsay Miller, Lydia Thompson, Hannah Fisher
3^rd Varsity 8
Sophia Perkins (coxswain), Olivia Curran, Sarah Velarde, Kate Pierce, Mackenzie Drake, Caroline Young, Hattie Doherty, Ashton Brown, Amelia Locklear