Rowing

Mamma mia! Rowers medal on Mother’s Day

by Jill Maxwell · Friday, May 15, 2026

Mothers of BA-B rowers took pride in their progeny on Sunday, May 10, as the Bromfield Acton-Boxborough crew earned podium places at the Amber Zapatka Memorial Regatta in Lowell.

The novice boys won their time trial and then their grand final in a photo finish. The girls U17 4 won their grand final as well. Silver medals graced the necks of the U17 boys pair, the girls first and third varsity 4s, and all three girls varsity 8s. The varsity girls pair took bronze.

A boys novice double raced in a U17 varsity event and finished second, despite having only practiced in a racing shell three times together, and the boys novice four finished its time trial 11 seconds ahead of their closest competitor, Brookline. “We put together a really great race plan, and they executed it perfectly,” said novice boys coach Chris Whitbeck.

BA-B faced 157 entries from 19 clubs and teams on the 2,000-meter Merrimack River course. Conditions kept it interesting. “We had all the seasons,” said Acton senior Braeden Hartley, a girls varsity captain. It was calm in the morning, then windy for the 4s, and rainy for the 8s. “When we launched, we weren’t expecting it, but when we got up to the start, there was a pretty rainbow, and it was a fun experience to get that out on the water,” she said. Hartley raced twice and brought home a silver and a bronze.

The racecourse itself was also unusual. Barges supporting the $303 million Rourke Bridge replacement project were positioned in the travel lane, so to get to the starting line, boats had to cross all the racing lanes and row down on the other side, which took them about 40 minutes instead of 30, Whitbeck said. Holly Hatton, the head coach of the varsity girls, said the team came through it well. “It was a very long day for the athletes due to various issues with adjustments needed on the course, but once they got on the water they raced with focus. I was pleased with the technical improvements I saw,” she said.

This regatta typically holds time trials on Saturday and finals on Sunday, but this year the whole event took place on Sunday because of lower-than-usual enrollment. “It was good to race more local crews, like Brookline and Arlington-Belmont, and see how we match up against other schools,” Hartley said.

Catherine Chappell, BA-B’s program director and head coach of the varsity boys, opted not to race most of the boys boats at Amber Z in order to focus on the upcoming USRowing Northeast Youth Championship Regatta May 16 and 17 in West Windsor, New Jersey. “I decided to not have the varsity boys compete this weekend since regionals involve a lot of travel,” Chappell said. “The boys team is very small right now compared to the other squads, and anyone not going to regionals has been working in singles to further develop their skills. I am so proud of all of these athletes for the work they’ve been putting in,” she added. “We are looking forward to racing at regionals and states!”

The girls first varsity 4 will head to Philadelphia for the Stotesbury Cup on May 15 and 16 to compete in the lightweight 4 event. Hatton notes that it will be the 99th running of the largest junior rowing event in the U.S.

Jill Maxwell is a BA-B parent and auntie.

Varsity girls

2-: Braeden Hartley and Emily Yang, third place, 7 minutes, 54.849 seconds
U172x: Julia Hayes and Alice Yang, fifth, 9:10.101
2x: Annabelle Purcell and Caroline Yang, fourth, 8:31.728; Ellery Thomas and Ada Hubbell, fifth in petite final, 8:53.514
U174+: Beth Belanger, Piper Candon, Etta Maxwell, Amelia McCormack, and coxswain Yuvika Rao, first, 7:32.691
1V4+: Izzi Walker, Simone Taylor, Ava Dawn, Alicia Tang, and coxswain Hanna Lem Moustakas, second, 7:23.255
1V8+: Ava Dawn, Beth Belanger, Piper Candon, Etta Maxwell, Amelia McCormack, Ellery Thomas, Braeden Hartley, Emily Yang, and coxswain Hanna Lem Moustakas, second, 6:41.321
2V8+: Izzi Walker, Gabriella Kim, Maroon Kendrick, Reval Argow-Sniderman, Annabelle Purcell, Caroline Yang, Simone Taylor, Alicia Tang, and coxswain Gwynnie Poutasse, second, 7:31.055
3V8+: Lily Lem Moustakas, Bronwyn Lemke, Anastasia Bolberova, Ada Hubbell, Sravya Hamsala, Autumn Desclos, Nix Klein, Grace Connor, and coxswain Gabriella Shee, second, 7:50.097