On February 22, our Varsity rowing team participated in their second regatta of the spring season in the Sarasota Invitational Regatta. They ended up bringing home two silver medals, all from the novice division. Their success is a testament to the preparation the team has put in all year. They finished their fall season with a strong performance at  the “Head of the Hooch” regatta in Tennessee and are hoping to continue this success in the spring season.

Last year was the teams’ inaugural year and since then they have grown into a tight knit group of girls with loads of experience. They have exceeded expectations and truly embraced this new role of being the first sport introduced into Lourdes since lacrosse.

“The girls on our team have grown so much in this past year. We’ve been training really hard and our technique has gotten so much better.” junior team captain Abigail Gonzalez said. “I can also see that the girls are actively trying to improve. Many of us choose to go to practice because we want to get better and be able to race on better, more competitive boats. “

Prior  to this regatta, the team focused on building endurance with daily training over the past few months. Their coaches emphasized synchronization between the team ensuring they were fully ready for race day.

“Going into this regatta I think our focus was to really learn how to work together as a team when we’re all on a boat together because that’s probably the most important factor during races,” junior Gabriella Stoetzer explained.

With a new team comes new members and this year there were many new faces on the rowing team. Whether freshmen, sophomores or juniors a lot of new additions joined the team this year and this regatta was their first time competing.

“I was hesitant to join the rowing team because I didn’t know what it was about at all, but after joining it has been such an amazing experience with such a good group of sople,” junior Paola Rodriguez said.

In the Girl’s Youth Novice 4+ category, the boat consisting of Paola Olaechea, Eva Diaz,  Katia Lopez, Paola Rodriguez, and coxswain Daniella Rodriguez claimed second place. Following this in the Girl’s Freshmen 8+ category, the boat consisting of Alex Pargas, Alison Lombillo, Gaby Aguado, Ana Sosa, Amando Machado, Amanda Anderson, Alexa Lopez, and coxswain Serina Bligh would also take home second place.

“We’ve worked so hard and prepared a lot for this, so I’m so happy to see our accomplishments,” junior Paola Olaehea said.

Not only have they grown and gradually performed better but they also became closer as a team. In addition to as a team they formed bonds with girls from across Miami who also row.

“We’ve gotten close with the other schools and clubs we train with such as Gulliver and Miami International Rowhouse”

The team’s performance at the Sarasota Invitational Regatta demonstrates their dedication and growth since last season. With a combination of experienced members and new fresh faces, they were able to come out victorious. The future looks bright for the new team as they start to prepare for their next regatta, the Oars Invitational in Orlando.