Full results here

The Duquesne Dukes raced on their home waters at the Head of the Ohio, in their season-opening race this past Saturday. While the course was familiar, the weather was less familiar; throughout the Fall, the Dukes were practicing in idyllic conditions, but Saturday brought with it the remnants of Hurricane Ian. Throughout the day, there was a steady tailwind which complimented the current and made for a fast racecourse, but with temperatures in the 50s and precipitation oscillating between light mist, light rain, and absolute downpour, it was a wet, raw day to be on the course. However, with the race being their first of the year and first race under new head coach Matt Carlsen, the team was excited to get a new start on the season and pull some quick times on the 4200m course!
 
The first pair of boats on the course for the Dukes' 2022-23 campaign were two singles, rowed by Senior Mikayla Bayto and Junior Kiran Dahnke. Both boats had strong races that they were happy with; Kiran started first, Mikayla last, in their race of three boats. Mikayla ended up passing both Kiran and the boat from Case Western, earning herself a first place finish, while Kiran finished third.
 
Next out on the course for the Dukes was the Freshman 8+, starting fourth of the five boats in their race. Across the start line, the Dukes took off at about 30 strokes per minute, chasing down the crews in front of them. First they passed Carnegie Mellon, then Miami (OH), and finally Pitt, before they got to the finish line. Due to a clerical error in the timing software, Pitt is shown ahead of Duquesne, but Duquesne was awarded the gold medal for the race, in a time of 14:34.5.
 
Following the Freshman 8+ race, Duquesne sent out an armada of four 4+s in the Women's Open 4+ race; out of the 20 boats in the race, 20% of them were from Duquesne. Each boat was somewhat scrambled in the order in which they started; the boat with Rory Brouillard coxing started first, the boat with Meghan Mangan coxing started fourth, the boat with Catherine Egan coxing started fifth, and the boat with Julia Laurie coxing started seventh. All boats took off from the start strong, taking advantage of the fast conditions, despite the steady rain, rating somewhere around 29 to 30 strokes per minute, except for Julia Laurie's boat, which came off the line at a blistering 36 strokes per minute. All four of the 4+s had a race they were happy with and they executed their plans well. At the finish line, Rory Brouillard's boat earned a silver medal, 7.5 seconds behind West Virginia University, and Meghan Mangan's boat earned a bronze, 8 seconds behind the first Duquesne boat. Finishing outside the medals, Catherine Egan's boat finished 14^th, and Julia Laurie's boat 18^th of the 20 crews entered.
 
Shortly after the 4+s churned up the course, a pair of seniors, Mikaela Nestel and Jillian Peters, took to the course in a race of four 2-s. The Dukes started second in line, behind a 2- from Carnegie Mellon, and before the race was halfway complete, Duquesne passed the Tartans and opened up an insurmountable lead on the rest of the field. For their efforts, Nestel/Peters were rewarded with a gold medal in a 38 second victory over a crew from the Three Rivers Rowing Association.
 
The final race of the day, taking place right after a heavy round of afternoon rain, were the 8+s. Similar to the 4+s race, the Dukes had four entries, composing almost a third of the 13 boat field. Coxswains for the 8+s, in their starting order, were Elizabeth Kuhn (started first), Catherine Egan (started 7th), Rory Brouillard (started 8th), and Julia Laurie (started 11th). This time, all the boats crossed the start line around 30-32 spm, and were able to maintain their rates on the course. With Kuhn's boat out front, they were not able to pass boats, but were able to put distance on the Penn State crew that started behind them, while Egan and Brouillard were able to reel in a handful of crews as they charged down the course. In the end, Duquesne finished an impressive 2^nd (Kuhn), 3^rd (Egan), 4^th (Brouillard) and 12^th (Laurie); the only crew to best the Dukes' top three boats were the Mountaineers of WVU, beating Duquesne's top crew by 3.7 seconds.
 
Head Coach Matt Carlsen said of the Dukes' performance: "This was a great first step in the process. Each race showed us some of our strengths but also different areas that we can improve upon before our next race. I am excited to see the confidence throughout the team continue to build each practice."
 
The Dukes will return to the racecourse in Moon Township, PA at the Yinzer Cup, hosted by Robert Morris University.
 
Lineups:
Race: Women's Open 1x
Bow #21: Kiran Dahnke
Bow #23: Mikayla Bayto
 
Race: Women's Collegiate Freshman/Novice 8+
Bow# 53
Coxswain: Paige Engel
Stroke: Mia Durante
7: Haley Haukedahl
6: Lauren Boyce
5: Nya Muffoletto
4: Natalie Hesch
3: Grace Kennevan
2: Samantha Szlachta
1: Megan Elliott
 
Race: Women's Open 4+
Bow# 67
Coxswain: Rory Brouillard
Stroke: Rebecca Swanson
3: Payton Campbell
2: Aynslee Sibley
Bow: Hannah Valenty
 
Bow# 71
Coxswain: Meghan Mangan
Stroke: Britta Wheeler
3: Madison Barker
2: Isabella Abbott
1: Bridget Abbott
 
Bow# 72
Coxswain: Catherine Egan
Stroke: Eliza Mance
3: Kelly Ardrey
2: Maggie Ray
Bow: Ava Bonita
 
Bow# 74
Coxswain: Julia Laurie
Stroke: Caitlin DeStefano
3: Erin Pyle
2: Sydney Lynch
Bow: Rosemary van der Net
 
Race: Women's Open 2-
Bow# 92
Stroke: Mikaela Nestel
Bow: Jillian Peters
 
Race: Women's Open 8+
Bow# 192
Coxswain: Elizabeth Kuhn
Stroke: Hannah Valenty
7: Rebecca Swanson
6: Payton Campbell
5: Lauren Boyce
4: Britta Wheeler
3: Bridget Abbott
2: Grace Kennevan
Bow: Aynslee Sibley
 
Bow# 198
Coxswain: Catherine Egan
Stroke: Mikaela Nestel
7: Isabella Abbott
6: Madison Barker
5: Cherise Dicke
4: Isabella Trovato
3: Brigid Haugh
2: Sarah Ricketts
Bow: Jillian Peters
 
Bow# 199
Coxswain: Rory Brouillard
Stroke: Mia Durante
7: Natalie Hesch
6: Mikayla Bayto
5: Kiran Dahnke
4: Nya Muffoletto
3: Haley Haukedahl
2: Maggie Ray
1: Samantha Szlachta
 
Bow# 202
Coxswain: Julia Laurie
Stroke: Eliza Mance
7: Kelly Ardrey
6: Olivia Silbert
5: Megan Elliott
4: Rosemary van der Net
3: Ava Bonita
2: Michelle Catao
Bow: Michaela Bosworth
 
Results:
Women's Open 1x: 1^st, 3^rd (of 3)
Women's Freshman/Novice 8+: 1^st (of 5)
Women's Open 4+: 2^nd, 3^rd, 14^th, 18^th (of 20)
Women's Open 2-: 1^st (of 4)
Women's Open 8+: 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, 12^th (of 13)