Philadelphia, Pa. – The Stetson men's rowing program competed in the historic Dad Vail Regatta for just the second time on Saturday on the Schuylkill River.
 
The Hatters had two entrants into the event, which was founded in 1934. The Dad Vail is billed as the largest collegiate rowing event in North America, with more than 100 colleges and universities from across the United States and Canada gathering to compete.
 
The event was canceled by the Covid pandemic in 2020 and was run with no spectators allowed this year.
 
Stetson entered both its first and second Varsity 8 crews.
 
"The Dad Vail Regatta is a historic race and Stetson created some school history this weekend," Stetson head rowing coach Katie Thurstin said. "Not only was it our first time bringing two crews, it was the first time either boat made it to the grand finals, which was a win for us this weekend. 
 
"Of course, we all hoped to have performed better in the grand finals, but we recognize that what is normally a two-day event was compressed into one day, which make getting a sufficient amount of recovery between the heats and finals very challenging."
 
Stetson's first heat race on Saturday was for the JV heavyweight crew, with freshman coxswain Bennett Rossell. The race included crews from local schools Drexel, Temple and La Salle as well as Delaware and Virginia. The Hatters were in lane five between Drexel and La Salle.
 
"We looked to be in good position to qualify for the finals, but then the crew from Virginia began to threaten our position," Stetson assistant coach Ethan Shoemaker said. "Our crew was able to adjust and Kaden led them on a last-second surge across the line just ahead of the UVA boat."
 
The crew from Drexel crossed the line first, with a time of 6:06.134, with Temple second just 5.952 seconds behind. Stetson finished third, 11.056 seconds behind the winning boat and less than six-tenths of a second ahead of Virginia. The crews from Delaware and LaSalle finished fifth and sixth respectively.
 
The second heat race of the day was for the first Varsity 8 crew with junior coxswain Walter Klein in command. Once again, the Hatters were in competition against primarily local crews including Georgetown, Temple and Delaware, along with Adrian College from Michigan.
 
"The guys were down at the half-way point, but our guys put on a show in the second half of the race," Shoemaker said. "We were able to claw past Georgetown for second place behind Temple to earn the second qualifying position for the grand final."
 
Temple edged Stetson by 3.988 seconds with a time of 5:53.736. Stetson finished just more than two seconds ahead of Georgetown and four seconds and change in front of Delaware.
 
The Hatters' second boat returned to the water for the JV final, finishing sixth, 22.882 seconds behind the winning boat from George Washington, which won by 4.6 seconds over Drexel with crews from Temple, Marietta College and St. Joseph's all more than 10 seconds off the pace.
 
The Varsity 8 grand final for the Richard O'Brien Trophy was the final men's race of the day. Stetson's crew was in the water against some of the best in the nation and finished fifth with a time of 5:47.353. The crew from Temple edged George Washington and Drexel to take the title with St. Joseph's fourth. Stetson crossed the line just three-tenths of a second in front of Colgate.
 
"Our relative youth and inexperience showed through in the finals," Shoemaker said. "Our crew was able to mount a late charge to surge past the defending champions to finish fifth.
 
"I am proud of both crews because Stetson had never appeared in the grand finals of the Dad Vail before, so our crews made history. More importantly, our guys got a great education on him much work there is left to do. With everyone back next year, and some solid incoming freshmen, I am excited to see what this team does next year."
 
Thurstin said it was amazing to see what the Hatters did this year while dealing with adverse conditions from the Covid pandemic.
 
"I am very proud of all the hard work this young team has put in together this year," Thurstin said. "Watching them embrace the uncertainty of this year and build trust has been very rewarding. Coach Shoemaker did a great job leading them during this turbulent time and was always reminding them that we must be grateful for any opportunity to be on the race course.
 
"Having a small team means individual choices and actions have a big impact on the team. This fact was heightened in a Covid world, which can either divide or unify a team. With solid leadership, the team turned inward and met adversity together, becoming a strong unit."
 
About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program has a vision of developing a culture of champions athletically, academically and within the community. This vision is accomplished through a mission of recruiting and developing student-athletes, coaches and staff, creating a culture of champions, within and outside of competition. The department operates with five core values: Championship Culture, Integrity, Excellence, Pride/Tradition and Leadership. To learn more about the Vision, Mission and Core Values for Stetson Athletics, visit GoHatters.com and click on Mission Statement under the Inside Athletics tab.