No. 9 Duke Takes Fifth Consecutive Carolina Cup

Saturday, March 6

Clemson, S.C.

Duke University

Carolina Cup

No. 9 Duke Takes Fifth Consecutive Carolina Cup

3/6/2021 10:12:00 PM | Rowing

CLEMSON, S.C. – The No. 9 Duke rowing team opened the 2021 spring season by capturing its fifth consecutive Carolina Cup Saturday on Lake Hartwell in Clemson, S.C.

Duke's 90 points bested second-place Clemson (80) and third-place North Carolina (70). The meet marked the first in 364 days for the Blue Devils, whose last multi-team competition was the 2020 Carolina Cup.

"Today was a great way for us to start the 2021 season," said head coach Megan Cooke Carcagno. "There was some really key racing for the team on display today, and I think our team took a lot away from the experience."

Duke took the top finish in each of the six races on the day, led off by a 3V8+ crew that posted a time of 6:43.9, 20 seconds ahead of the second-place Tigers (7:03.9). The 2V4+/3V4+ race followed with the Blue Devils claiming the top two times. The 2V4+ boat, coxed by sophomore Nikita Suri, came in at 7:23.7, while a Haley Dion-coxed 3V4+ squad finished at 7:32.8.

The varsity-4 lineup of junior Megan Knauer (coxswain), junior Stella Haley, freshman Kathryn Nash, senior Reed Kenny and junior Mia Johnson made it three in a row for Duke, as their finishing time of 7:22.9 narrowly beat Clemson's 7:24.4.

Duke's 2V8+ boat, coxed by newcomer Ithika Senthilnathan, recorded the team's largest margin of victory by clocking a time of 6:28.3 – over 20 seconds faster than the Tigers' 2V8, which placed second at 6:48.5.

The varsity-8 crew capped the day off with a winning time of 6:26.8, which goes in as the 10th-fastest V8 time in program history.

"After such a long break, we were so grateful for this opportunity to be together and have fun on a race course," said Cooke Carcagno. "We have a lot of work to do over the next nine weeks to hit our goals, but I'm confident in our team's ability to rise each week."

Duke next competes at the Virginia Invite in Charlottesville, Va., from March 26-27.

Team Point Totals
1. Duke 90
2. Clemson 80
3. North Carolina 70

V8+
1. Duke – 6:26.8
2. Clemson – 6:31.0
3. North Carolina – 6:47.2

2V8+
1. Duke – 6:28.3
2. Clemson – 6:48.5
3. North Carolina – 6:59.5

V4+
1. Duke – 7:22.9
2. Clemson – 7:24.4
3. North Carolina – 7:47.9

2V4+/3V4+
1. Duke 2V4+ -- 7:23.7
2. Duke 3V4+ -- 7:32.8
3. Clemson 2V4+ -- 7:51.3
4. Clemson 3V4+ -- 7:54.1
5. Clemson 4V4+ -- 8:33.5

3V8+
1. Duke – 6:43.9
2. Clemson – 7:03.9
3. North Carolina – 7:18.9

Lineups
V8 – Tara Fagan (Cox), Lauren Sizemore (Stroke), Gabriella Salvati, Megan Lee, Morgan Linsley, Meera Chakrabarti, Erin Heyeck, Sydney Johnson, McKendree Densel (Bow)

2V8 – Ithika Senthilnathan (Cox), Brenna Morley (Stroke), Sydney Cikovic, Grace Butero, Savannah Herbek, Ema Kuczura, Caeley Tierney, Emilie Lijesen (Bow)

V4 – Megan Knauer (Cox), Stella Haley (Stroke), Kathryn Nash, Reed Kenny, Mia Johnson (Bow)

2V4 – Nikita Suri (Cox), Rivca Chaver (Stroke), Paige Knudsen, Maya Blake, Kelsey Lackey (Bow)

3V8 – Sarah Royka (Cox), Rachel McNutt (Stroke), Olivia Hunt, Laura Navarrete, Ryleigh Katstra, Shae Simpson, Mariella Adams-Grimaldi, Charlotte Sendek, Sarah Hubner (Bow)

3V4 – Haley Dion (Cox), Caitlyn Carlisle (Stroke), Caroline Olsen, Jordan Smith, Lee Ann Cunningham (Bow)

#GoDuke