Rowing Takes Home Two Trophies at Ford Lake Cup

Saturday, April 26

Ford Lake, Mich.

University of Delaware

Ford Lake Cup

Photo by: University of Delaware

4/26/2025 8:10:00 PM | Rowing

YPSILANTI, Mich. – University of Delaware rowing came away with both trophies that were up for grabs at the Ford Lake Cup on Saturday. Both the Ford Lake Cup, awarded to the team with the highest cumulative point total, and MAC/Harvey Cup, awarded to the team with the highest cumulative point total among future MAC Conference schools, headed back to Newark with the Blue Hens. The races featured future MAC foes Eastern Michigan, Temple, UMass, and High Point, as well as Bucknell West Virginia and Duquesne.

The racing conditions featured a misty and chilly morning with a heavy cross-tail wind. The weather led to a condensed racing schedule, posing a significant challenge to the athletes, including leading to a few races being cancelled.

ON THE RECORD

"It was such an incredible experience bringing the Blue Hens to my home state and getting the win," Grace Phillips, coxswain of the Varsity Eight said. "I feel super proud all around! Everything that happened today was so good for our team."
"First, I am really grateful to Eastern Michigan for hosting this race and even letting us borrow one of their boats," Madeline Climie of the Second Varsity Eight said. "We were tested a lot this weekend, and we took advantage of every opportunity to dig in and show grit. Our hard work all season has created great opportunities for us as a team. Today gave us the chance to see where we stand among a lot of other teams, and I'm really excited for the future. I think we're in a good spot, both for the CAAs in a couple weeks, and for next year when the team moves to the MAC Conference."
"Our sprint had a lot of heart," Makana Steinmetz of the Varsity Four said. "The conditions were treacherous, but we put everything out there to finish on the podium. Our team has really grown this season in dealing with adversity, whether its weather, last minute changes, or tough competition, so today we handled the hard situations better, and rolled with all the punches. The word of the weekend for us was adversity."

HEN HIGHLIGHTS

The Varsity Eight lead the field from the start. UMass and Bucknell had their bows on Delaware's coxswain at the 500m mark. Through the 1K, the Minutemen and Bison took a few seats each, but the Hens responded to every move. In the final 500, it was Delaware and UMass sprinting to the line, with UD countering and creating more space with a strong sprint to the finish. As Delaware crossed first, it earned 24 points for the team trophy, which were the most up for grabs.
In the A Final, the Second Varsity Eight battled down the course with several crews before taking a solidifying move at the 1000m mark, putting the Blue & Gold several seats over most crews. The Hens traded blows with Bucknell through the second 1K and finished with a fiery sprint to the line. UD's second place finish earned the team 14 points toward the team trophies.
The Varsity Four found themselves in the back of the pack after the first 500 meters of its A Final, but took a strong move in the middle of the race to fight through a competitive field. With conditions worsening down the course, Delaware put down a convincing sprint to secure the bronze. The Hens' third place finish earned the team six points in the total tally.

RESULTS

Varsity 8+ (1^st Round)
- Delaware: 6:32.2
- Eastern Michigan: 6:37.3
- High Point: 6:49.1
- West Virginia: 6:58.5
Second Varsity 8+ (1^st Round)
- Eastern Michigan: 6:53.7
- Delaware: 6:54.6
- UMass: 7:00.5
- Duquesne: 7:26.9
Varsity 4+ (1^st Round)
- UMass: 7:48.4
- Delaware: 7:55.9
- Duquesne: 7:57.2
- Temple: 8:13.1
Varsity 8+ (A Final)
- Delaware: 6:41.3
- UMass: 6:43.1
- Temple: 6:45.2
- Bucknell: 6:48.6
- Eastern Michigan: 6:54.1
- High Point: 7:09.9
Second Varsity 8+ (A Final)
- Bucknell: 6:55.8
- Delaware: 6:57.6
- Eastern Michigan: 6:59.9
- West Virginia: 7:04.0
- UMass: 7:07.8
- Temple: 7:15.3
Varsity 4+ (A Final)
- Bucknell: 7:46.5
- UMass: 7:48.5
- Delaware: 7:57.5
- Duquesne: 7:59.5
- West Virginia: 8:09.1
- High Point: 8:15.4

LINEUPS

Varsity 8+	Second Varsity 8+	Varsity 4+
Grace Phillips (C) Cornelia Meiss Meaghan Leahy Sarah Donaldson Maya McCottry Amari Randall Ava Tine Tynneqa Jefferies Corinne Carlson	Claire Higgins-Hart (C) Delaney Denegar Samantha Ryan Abigail Buss Madeline Climie Meghan Rogers Izzy Martinez Chloe Kluender Kailey Grimley	Amina Mai (C) Shannon Dolt Makana Steinmetz Sophia Iorio Olivia Hollingsworth

UP NEXT
Delaware will compete at the CAA Championship in Cherry Hill, N.J. on Friday, May 16 and Saturday, May 17.

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