The Michigan women’s rowing team traveled to Columbus over the weekend with one thing in mind — to beat No. 4 Virginia.
Though the seventh-ranked Wolverines had a solid showing overall at the ACC/Big Ten Double Dual, they were unable to pull ahead of the Cavaliers at Griggs Reservoir on Saturday.
The first varsity eight boat was closest to victory in the first morning session. The crew crossed the finish line at 6:26.2, just over three seconds slower than Virginia. The Cavaliers expanded the gap against the second varsity eight and the varsity fours, though they were still competitive.
Entering the second session of the day, Michigan was set for a comeback. Racing against Clemson and Michigan State — the Wolverines beat the latter team in September — they took charge.
Winning all varsity races, Michigan rowed through the Tigers and Spartans with ease. The first varsity eight, conducted by junior coxswain Francesca Derteano, redeemed itself with a 6:40.7 victory, more than five seconds faster than runner-up Michigan State, while the second varsity eight won by nearly 13 seconds.
Both the first and second varsity fours demolished their competition, pulling ahead of second place by 10 and 18.4 seconds, respectively. Michigan State, the Wolverines’ lone Big Ten competition, trailed in third for both races.
Michigan will see more Big Ten competition this coming weekend against Ohio State and Rutgers when it travels to Camden, N.J. And with a few Big Ten wins under its belt, the team will enter the water confident.