The Orange and Blue women’s rowing team traveled to Saratoga Springs, New York to compete in the Ivy League Invitational. The Bison’s varsity eight had their first win in history against Harvard at the competition. 

The Orange and Blue Rowing team had two boats of eight and two boats of four in the competition on Saturday. With the Bison competing in the second flight of Varsity Eights, they fell behind Princeton earning a second place finish. Although they didn’t beat Princeton, they beat two Ivy League opponents: Harvard-Radcliffe and Cornell. The Orange and Blue finished with a fantastic time of 6:48.038, surpassing Harvard-Radcliffe by 3.6 seconds. 

The Bucknellian’s own Juliette Gaggini ’24 helped lead the Bison to this accomplishment, as the coxswain of the V8+ squad. Crew Erin Sullivan ’22, Maddie Wickers ’23, Hayden Groves ’25, Natalie Kreusch ’22, Caroline Brandt ’23, Kona Glenn ’25, Kate Meerscheidt ’22 and Elizabeth Berlinger ’23 synced together perfectly to secure a victory. 

Crew member Wickers commented about the competition. “I would say that it was a very successful weekend. Going in, we were nervous but the team as a whole kept their cool especially going up against such competitive teams. Beating Harvard was an awesome feat considering the work we have been putting in!” Wickers said. 

The Varsity Eight raced once more in the afternoon, defeating Cornell but falling just behind Yale. Even though the Bison fell to Yale and claimed second place, Yale was the number two ranked team in the nation so the Bison put up a strong fight. 

The coxswain of the second V8 was Ollie McDonald ’25, accompanied by crew members Georgia Lambrakis ’23, Chloe Segal ’23, Amanda Pennett ’24, Alina Kelly ’25, Christina DeMola ’23, Caroline Keating ’22, Jess Volcheck ’22 and Annabelle Kaeli ’24. 

In the first V4, the coxswain was Ava Rysman ’23 accompanied by crew members Abby Gerst ’24, Millie Malloy ’23, Abby Malek ’24 and Elliana Steely ’25. 

The second V4 had the coxswain Molly Garrahy ’24 accompanied by crew members Haley Beardsley ’24, Isa Fassio-Bazzi ’25, Dehlia Rotchford ’24 and Rebecca Watson ’25. 

The Bison women’s rowing team competes against Eastern Michigan, Villanova, and Connecticut on Saturday April 16 on the Susquehanna River.