by Jill Maxwell ·
Friday, October 18, 2024
In James Bond books and movies, Q is the character that comes up with all manner of gadgets. The Bromfield Acton-Boxborough rowing team needed no such assistance on Oct. 13; they used their muscles, their minds, and their grit in two Massachusetts contests.
Crews of two or more took to Worcester’s Lake Quinsigamond for the Northeast Fall Championship Regatta, braving raw conditions and winning multiple medals. Meanwhile in Boston, BA-B rowers raced in singles at the Head of the Quinobequin sculling event, where they also picked up a little bit of bling, including placing fourth in team points out of 21 clubs.
Rowers came off the water smiling but shivering in the chilly rain in Worcester. This regatta awards medals in two categories: “high school,” which are teams supported by a single high school, and “juniors,” which are teams from private clubs or more than one school, as in the case of BA-B.
The girls finished strong in every race, winning medals at nearly every opportunity. Their first varsity 4 won not only the junior division but the entire event. Their time was 23 seconds faster than the second place crew from Brewster Academy of Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, and over a minute faster than local rivals Wayland-Weston and Arlington-Belmont.
The boys also hauled some hardware home. In a display of team depth, their three 4s commanded the course, winning two golds and a bronze. “We tested a lineup for our Head of the Charles entry and took the measure of where we are in the field,” said Gary Piantedosi, the varsity boys head coach. “We’ve been trying a few more lineups in practice this week to see if we can squeeze out a little more speed. The U17s and second and third 4s continue to impress us with their grit and determination and were rewarded with some nice hardware.”
The BA-B boys first varsity 4 on their way to a bronze medal at the Northeast Fall Championship Regatta on October 13. From the top: Ulad Danilovich, Atticus Keep, Henry Belanger, and Shankara Rao. (Courtesy photo)
BA-B alumnus Christopher Clark (Bromfield ’20) won the men’s master’s single at the Northeast Fall Championship. Current BA-B novice crews snagged a few top finishes as well; Mihir Vidhate and Alex Pearce took gold in a double, and the girls first and second novice 8s both swept up silver.
The rainy conditions over at the Head of the Quinobequin in Boston abated in time for the racing, reported Amanda Sundheimer Ellam (Bromfield ’14), an assistant coach with the team. Ellam says the athletes who posted faster times than the BA-B rowers were all full-time scullers, which means they practice and compete with two oars each. BA-B kids learn sculling in eighth grade and then start sweep-rowing with one oar each. “Hanging with them, despite not only training as scullers, is impressive,” she said. The younger kids were “so excited about getting to do a race, and got their medals awarded by a former Olympian,” which was a nice little thrill.
The storied Head of the Charles Regatta takes place Oct. 18 through 20. BA-B will enter a men’s alumni 8 and a women’s alumnae 4 on Saturday, Oct. 19, and a boys 4 and a girls quad on Sunday the 20th.
Jill Maxwell is a BA-B parent and regular contributor.
Northeast Fall Championship Regatta, junior division
Varsity girls
- 2x: Braeden Hartley and Beatrice Maxwell, first place, 18 minutes, 2.5 seconds; Izzi Walker and Ava Dawn, 2nd, 19:08.; Gabby Shee and Ellie Pulido, fifth place, 20:19.4
- 1V4+: Beatrice Maxwell, Emma Lawson, Ellie Daly, Braeden Hartley, and coxswain Hanna Lem Moustakas, first, 16:50.5
- 2V4+: Nix Klein, Reval Argow-Sniderman, Annabelle Purcell, Caroline Yang, and coxswain Gwyneth Poutasse, second, 18:49.0
- 1V8+: Abigail Hirschberg, Megha Nookala, Izzi Walker, Reval Argow-Sniderman, Annabelle Purcell, Alexis Nichols, Caroline Yang, Ava Dawn, and coxswain Gwyneth Poutasse, third, 17:08.5
- 2V8+: Gabby Shee, Sravya Hamsala, Ainsley Charland, Margaux Lehouck, Nix Klein, Ellie Pulido, Sophia Pierce, Nooriya Taherbhoy, and coxswain Sofi Marder, second, 17:52.5
Varsity boys
- 1x: Henry Belanger, third, 18:46.0
- 2x: Andrew Zhang and Miles Dusset, fourth, 20:49.8
- 1V4+: Shankara Rao, Henry Belanger, Atticus Keep, Ulad Danilovich, and coxswain Noah Kim, third, 15:58.0
- 2V4+: Patrick Tucker, Parker Cole, Oscar Maxwell, Julian Fariello, and coxswain Austin Lai, first, 15:55.1
- 3V4+: Alex Horton, William O’Donnell, Maxton Zilinek, Russell Poutasse, and coxswain Topher Korka, first, 17:12.7
- 1V8+: Ulad Danilovich, Patrick Tucker, Russell Poutasse, Oscar Maxwell, Parker Cole, Atticus Keep, Henry Belanger, Shankara Rao, and coxswain Austin Lai, fourth, 14:43.8
- 2V8+: Miles Dusset, Liam Abayasinghe, Andrew Zhang, Felipe Ferraz da Rocha Paes, Charlie Leuci, Dino Mehic, Noah Friedman, Maxton Zilinek, and coxswain Noah Kim, sixth, 18:16.5
Head of the Quinobequin
Girls
- U17: Emily Yang, fifth, 14:36.6
- U19: Johnny Greenberg, seventh, 14:20.2; Will Stoddard, 8th, 14:24.4; Emma Gregg, 13th, 14:42.4
Boys
- U13: Nicholas Formichelli, second place, 20:39.9; Declan Magnuson, third, 21;02.7; Johan Joel, fourth, 21:10.7
- U15: Quinn Molloy, 11th, 23:12.6