CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – When Canisius College rowing's fall schedule came out in early fall, the event that was immediately circled by Canisius fans was the Head of the Charles, held in Cambridge Mass., on Oct. 17-18. By reputation, the Head of the Charles is one of the most prestigious regattas in the sport. The Canisius College crew will compete at the event for the third-straight year on Saturday, and has a chance to impress on the national stage.
“We want to break the tie,” head coach Joel Furtek said. “We've had one great performance and one not-so great performance, and we're looking to improve. This is a grand stage and if you have a great row, boy, it really pays off, but if you don't, there are plenty of people that are ready to take their shot at you.”
When the Griffs made their first appearance at the Head of the Charles in 2013, the Blue and Gold most likely turned heads with its seventh-place finish. The varsity eight featuring Liz Reinwald, Liz DelBarba, Corrine Kickel, Nora Kennon, Liz McKinney, Amanda Keilich, Allison Braun and Bridget Laszewski, posted a time of 17:32.943. However last year's varsity eight (Kennon, Anna DeCosta-Klipa, Kickel, Molly Murphy, Kathryn Hobika, Madeline Kurka, Erin Grim, Reinwald and Blum), the Griffs came in 23rd with a time of 17:57.796. With stark contrast in pefromances from year one to year two, the Griffs believe this year's squad has what it takes to best the time from 2013.
“This is a crew that understands the difficulty of this race but also the opportunity,” Furtek said. “You're passing under bridges and rowing in front of 250,000 people, it takes a real mindset to tune that out and also feed off that at the same time. We have the right mix of women that are ready for that challenge.”
Canisius has had to rely on practice more than usual during the last couple of weeks, as its home regatta; the Head of the Niagara was cancelled due to high winds. However the squad up til that point had already posted a pair of impressive races. The first varsity eight had yet to be beaten by an opponent this season, while both the second varsity eight and varsity four, had also posted impressive times.
While Canisius has a roster of over 30 student athletes, the Griffs are only able to send nine to represent the Blue and Gold on the Charles. Canisius will be represented by freshman Sydney Bichsel, Kickel, Murphy, Kurka, Hobika, Brooke Stanley, Kennon, freshman Shannon Pritzker and Blum. Stanley is the only Canisius rower that hasn't been down the course at the Head of the Charles either in high school or at Canisius.
“The Head of the Charles is a great reminder that we're apart of something that's really big,” Furtek said. “It's the only place I know where a three mile river is lined with spectators. It is an experience that reminds them we're doing something special.”
