Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne University rowing team picked up its first championship of the spring this past weekend, winning the Ford Lake Cup at Eastern Michigan University. The Dukes swept the competition, with the First Varsity 8 and Second Varsity 8 as well as the First Varsity 4 and Second Varsity 4 each finishing first in competitions against Eastern Michigan and Toledo in Ypsilanti, Mich.
 
Heading to the starting blocks, all coaches and rowers took notice of the adequate weather conditions compared to last year's regatta. Wind gusts were at 13 miles per hour (MPH) and up to 20 MPH compared to last year's 15 to 16 MPH wind conditions, with gusts up to 25 MPH. Since fewer teams competed this year, all boats completed a 2,000-meter row on the buoyed course. 
 
SECOND VARSITY 4
For the first race of the day, Duquesne sent out their second varsity four boat, which went up against the Second Varsity 4 and Third Varsity 4 from Eastern Michigan. Coming off the starting block strong, the Dukes were able to walk away from both fours during the first 500 meters and carried that momentum through the entirety of the 2K. In the end, the Dukes finished 4.6 seconds in front of the EMU 2v4 and 7.8 seconds in front of the EMU 3v4.  
 
FIRST VARSITY 4
Starting shortly after the 2v4 race, the Duquesne 1v4 boat took to the course. When the starting command sounded and both boats began their journey to the finish line, the crews were neck and neck for the first 250 meters. Around the 500-meter mark, the Dukes took seat after seat up on EMU's four and proceeded to put a two-to-three boat lengths of a gap between the two of them for the next 1,250 meters. The Dukes ended their race 9.6 seconds ahead of the EMU 1v4. 
 
SECOND VARSITY 8
Up next was the Dukes second varsity eight, which fought seat for seat up until the sprint, where Duquesne surged to the finish line first. Both crews began the third race of the day with a clean start and neither held back on their pressure. Each push from one boat was met by the other boat causing the Dukes to have to use their sprint wisely. As the finish line neared, the nine Dukes took off and finished 3.4 seconds ahead of their EMU competitor and over a minute ahead of Toledo's 2v8.
 
FIRST VARSITY 8
For the final 2k of the competition, three varsity eight boats lined up and began their piece. In the beginning 100 to 250 meters of the race, all boats started close with one or two seats apart. For the next 500 meters Duquesne set about to take more seats from both crews, which it succeeded in doing so, especially on Toledo's boat. As the race went on, all nine girls had to push and stay ahead of EMU's eight who made a move around the 1,500-meter mark. In the end, both boats were no match for the Dukes, who during their final push to the finish line, took a fierce sprint and gained gold. The Dukes ended their tight race 1.9 seconds ahead of the EMU 1v8 and 21.9 seconds in front of Toledo's 8 boat. 
 
RESULTS
First Place all boats.
  
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"I'm very proud of how we handled the races against eastern Michigan and Toledo after last weekend's long weekend of racing in Tennessee," head coach Matt Carlsen said. "To come away with four wins against great teams helps to give us a little more confidence going into our championship segment of the season. Very excited for what is to come."
 
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"I think this weekend was a confidence boost for the whole squad," senior captain Nora Grace Foglia said. "It's been really rewarding to see all our hard work paying off." 
 
UP NEXT
The Dukes compete on their home course against West Virginia University, Canisius, Toledo and Robert Morris University at the Duquesne Invitational Saturday, May 2. Action begins at 9:30 a.m. 
 
LINEUPS
                      1st Varsity 8             2nd Varsity 8                                          
Bow            Nicole Woroszylo        Madison Lambert        
2                   Nina DiFonzo              Dakota Psensky                                        
3                   Mikayla Bartos             Ella Hinchey                
4                   Jocelyn Tatarko          Reilly Tibbitts                                           
5                   Danielle Smith            Brooke Brindise                                
6                   Catie Duffner              Margaret Osterhaudt            
7                   Cherise Dicke             Addison Selby                                
Stroke          Nora Grace Foglia      Sabrina Alcaro                
Coxswain     Serena DeCosmo         Paige Engel                      
 
                            Varsity 4                    2nd Varsity 4 
Bow                 Isabelle Pilato                Katherine Zema
2                      Cate Manclark              Mateja van Gameren
3                        Jonah Althof                     Ellie Knuth
Stroke              Ella Kerrigan                 Lily Armstrong                
Coxswain      Caitlin Langford                  Kat Muha
 
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