Louisville Concludes Oak Ridge Cardinal Invitational

Saturday, March 16

Oak Ridge, TN

University of Louisville

Oak Ridge Cardinal Invitational

March 17, 2024 | Rowing

By: Lori Harmon

OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – The University of Louisville rowing team concluded the 12^th Annual Oak Ridge Cardinal Invitational with a pair of top-two finishes Sunday morning at Melton Lake.

"Today caps off a very productive training trip and we do not plan to let the foot off the gas," said UofL head coach Derek Copeland. "It was great to get another win this weekend because they never seem to come easy. The younger rowers are gaining valuable experience every race, and we expect that to pay off in the coming weeks."

The final day was highlighted by the varsity eight's first place finish. Izzy Hussey coxed Lexi Bernard, Claire Carver-Ritter, Evey Peplowski, Kaylie Leonard, Macy Whisenand, Payton Stinson, Madeline Giron and Isabella Ulloa to a time of 6:38.631. North Carolina placed second (6:40.383) and San Diego finished third (6:41.790).

"It was really great to see everyone so attentive and intentional throughout the training trip portion of this week and it carried over to race day really well," said Peplowski "In all my years here I feel like this is one of the most prepared we've been for racing and it definitely showed. This is a great first stepping-stone for our season goals and I'm so incredibly proud of what this team has been able to accomplish in just one week. I'm beyond excited to get back to work and build off of the confidence and skill we gained from this weekend."

The second varsity eight boat battled, but placed third with a time of 6:49.602, just behind San Diego's time of 6:49.498. North Carolina led the way with a 6:43.878.

"The 2V8 made some improvements to get themselves in that race today," said Copeland. "It stings to get edged out in the end, though, and I have no doubt that they will keep maximizing what got them there. I look forward to seeing what they do the next time they have that opportunity.

The varsity four boat stroked to a second-place finish with a time of 7:32.312, behind North Carolina (7:27.812) and ahead of San Diego (7:39.917).

The third varsity four boat posted a second-place finish behind North Carolina and the 2V4 boat placed third behind North Carolina and San Diego.

The Cardinals will return to action in two weeks when they travel to Sarasota, Fla., for the Sunshine Invitational March 29-30.

"This weekend was very revealing to our squad, both in the sense that we have more to improve, more speed to find, but also that the hard work they've done to this point," said assistant coach Egan Berne. "The intense training camp they just had, it's all pushing us forward. We have a lot of momentum going into the remainder of March and we can't wait to get back to Louisville, get back out on the Ohio, and use it."

Oak Ridge Cardinal Invitational Sunday Results
V8
1 – Louisville (6:38.632)
2 – North Carolina (6:40.383)
3 – San Diego (6:41.790)

2V8
1 – North Carolina (6:43.878)
2 – San Diego (6:49.498)
3 – Louisville (6:49.602)

V4
1 – North Carolina (7:27.812)
2 – Louisville (7:32.312)
3 – San Diego (7:39.917)

2V4
1 – North Carolina (7:39.841)
2 – San Diego (7:48.498)
3 – Louisville (8:06.886)

3V4
1 – North Carolina (7:49.507)
2 – Louisville (8:11.085)

V8
C Izzy Hussey
8 Lexi Bernard
7 Claire Carver-Ritter
6 Evey Peplowski
5 Kaylie Leonard
4 Macy Whisenand
3 Payton Stinson
2 Madeline Giron
1 Isabella Ulloa

2V8
C Olivia Guarnaccia
8 Graycen West
7 Cierra Chavez
6 Victoria Iorillo
5 Neala Marshall
4 Taylor Fausey
3 Gabrielle Zanoni
2 Bradlie Hicks
1 Alaina Holder

V4
4 Emma Bell
3 Mary Noschang
2 Haley Kunz
1 Ali Matthews
C Mackenna Billington

2v4
4 Carlie Pennington
3 Grace Rodebaugh
2 Bria Ragauckas
1 Margot Kaufman
C Leah Watters

3v4
4 Lauren Stedry
3 Stella Mancini
2 Stella Scott
1 Kate Eisenbeis
C Leigh Hatton