Cougs set for the Head of the Spokane this Saturday
SPOKANE, Wash. – The Washington State rowing team heads to the Lilac City this Saturday, Oct. 15, to compete in the 2022 Head of the Spokane. The regatta gets underway at 9 a.m. PT at the Gonzaga boathouse on the Spokane River.
Regatta Information
Washington State will be competing against Oregon State, Loyola Marymount, and host Gonzaga at the 2022 Head of the Spokane. Racing is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. PT, Saturday at the Gonzaga Boathouse on the Spokane River. There will be two racing flights, with the first one starting at 9 a.m. PT, while the second flight is scheduled to begin at 10:45 a.m. PT.
The 5,000-meter race is in head format, in which the boats start at intervals, racing both the clock and each other.
WSU Rowing Head Coach Jane LaRiviere on the Head of the Spokane
"It's going to be a great regatta. We've been spending a lot of time in small boats and this will be the first time we get a chance to race the eights and the fours. It will also be a nice chance for the whole team to race. I'm looking for people to step up, have a great race, and do their best in this early season race."
Live Results and Boat Lineups
Fans can follow all of the action at the 2022 Head of the Spokane by clicking the link here.
Check with @WSUCougarRowing on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter the morning of the race for boat lineups.
Debuting a New Varsity Eight Shell
Saturday's regatta will be the first time that Washington State will get to race in its new varsity eight shell, named after WSU's Olympic Gold Medalist Lisa Roman. The boat was christened by its namesake on Gesa Field during WSU football's game against Oregon. Roman, who is a two-time Olympic rower with Canada, helped her home country win the Gold at the 2020 Olympic Games in Toyoko.
"It's a great honor for Lisa," said LaRiviere. "She has done so much for our program. She is someone who the entire squad, even former rowers, looks up to. She has set such a great example and she loves rowing. (Naming a shell after her) was the least we could do after she won a gold medal. I think it is special to have her name on the boat. She is a proud Coug, and at one point, was just like the rest of the rowers in the boat."
Last Time on the Water
The duo of junior Ilaria Macchi and freshman Siena Snow captured a second-place finish in the pairs 250-meter sprint final at the 11th Annual Burnaby Small Boat Invitational to highlight Washington State rowing's first meet of the 2022-23 season. The WSU duo clocked in at 53.208 in the finals. Macchi and Snow advanced to the 250-meter sprint final after finishing fourth in the morning's 4-kilometer race with a time of 17:03.745.
Fifth-year senior Samantha Schmidt advanced to the single scull 250-meter sprint final, where she placed sixth with a time of 1:07.587. Schmidt moved on to the finale after finishing fifth in the morning's 4-kilometer single scull race, clocking in at 18:35.786.
Last Time at the Head of the Spokane
The Washington State rowing team had two varsity eight boats post a top-five finish at the 2021 Head of the Spokane, as the Cougars competed in their first fall regatta since 2019.
WSU's 1V8 boat clocked in at 16:39 to finish second place in the first flight's varsity eight race at the Head of the Spokane. The Cougars 1V8 boat finished 10 seconds ahead of third-place Gonzaga and 30 seconds in front of the Washington State 2V8 boat. Oregon State won the varisty eight race with a time of 16:24.
The Cougar's varsity 4-A boat and novice boats rounded out the morning's first flight. The WSU 4V-A boat clocked in at 19:28 to finish first in the heat and WSU's novice boat finished with a time of 19:29.
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For more information on the Washington State rowing team, follow @WSUCougarRowing on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.