Virginia women’s rowing wins 11th straight ACC title

For the 11th straight season, the Virginia Cavaliers are ACC women’s rowing champs. The Hoos claimed the trophy on Saturday (May 15) morning, sweeping all five Varsity Grand Finals. Virginia finished with 99 points, followed by Duke and Syracuse with 84 and 81 points, respectively. No team has come close to Virginia’s rowing domination in conference as the Hoos have now won 20 of 21 championship regattas and 82 of the 90 races run.

“I am so proud of these kids,” Virginia head coach Kevin Sauer said after the victory. “We’ve all been through a lot, but the resilience of these kids, everybody, shows a lot. I’m just so proud of our team, this staff and program. It’s even more emotional this year to win this thing.”

The Varsity Eight — which consisted of Colette Glass (coxswain), Sonja Schlosser, Abbie Bird, Leia Till, Sophia Kershner, Katy Flynn, Cate Porter, Alli Terblanche, and Kate Kelly (bow) — ensured the Virginia title with a five-second win over second-place Duke. They were unsurprisingly named the ACC Crew of the Year, with Sauer earning ACC Coach of the Year.

Glass, Kershner, Flynn, and Grace Comerford (of the Second Varsity Eight) all earned spots on the All-ACC Rowing First Team. Tessa Otting, also on Virginia’s Second Varsity Eight, made the All-ACC Rowing Second Team.

Next up, Virginia will look to win the program’s third NCAA title and first since 2012. Like many other sports, rowing had their championship canceled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The NCAA Championships take place May 28-30 in Sarasota, Florida.

Here are the full results:

2021 ACC Rowing Championship Results

Third Varsity Eight, Petite Final

1. Boston College 7:33.779, 2. North Carolina 7:48.395.

Third Varsity Eight, Grand Final

1. Virginia, 7:01.449, 2. Duke, 7:07.461, 3. Syracuse, 7:13.449, 4. Clemson, 7:15.525, 5. Notre Dame, 7:18.045, 6. Miami, 7:26.761.

Second Varsity Four, Petite Final

1. Louisville, 8:02.954, 2. Boston College, 8:14.098.

Second Varsity Four, Grand Final

1. Virginia, 7:40.481, 2. Syracuse, 7:43.991, 3. Duke, 7:44.505, 4. Clemson, 7:48.123, 5. Notre Dame, 7:50.443, 6. North Carolina, 8:02.209.

Varsity Four, Petite Final

1. North Carolina, 7:58.097, 2. Miami, 8:07.091, 3. Boston College, 8:22.709.

Varsity Four, Grand Final

1. Virginia, 7:25.204, 2. Duke, 7:34.402, 3. Syracuse, 7:36.312, 4. Clemson, 7:40.186, 5. Notre Dame, 7:42.886, 6. Louisville, 7:50.772.

Second Varsity Eight Petite Final

1. Boston College, 7:00.855, 2. Louisville, 7:04.439, 3. North Carolina, 7:24.849.

Second Varsity Eight Grand Final

1. Virginia, 6:34.586, 2. Syracuse, 6:36.454, 3. Duke, 6:43.776, 4. Notre Dame, 6:51.262, 5. Clemson, 6:51.330, 6. Miami, 6:56.770.

Varsity Eight Petite Final

1. Louisville, 6:48.174, 2. Boston College, 6:49.832, 3. North Carolina, 6:54.992.

Varsity Eight Grand Final

1. Virginia, 6:25.552, 2. Duke, 6:30.226, 3. Syracuse, 6:31.650, 4. Clemson, 6:35.622, 5. Miami, 6:38.878, 6. Notre Dame, 6:41.208.