Louisville Finishes Weekend in Florida

Saturday, March 28

Sarasota, FL

University of Louisville

Sarasota 2k

March 29, 2026 | Rowing

The Cardinals 2V4 finished fifth overall while the V8, 2V8 and V4 boats placed first in the respective finals of the Sarasota 2k

By: Dana Brown

SARASOTA, Fla. – University of Louisville rowing finished its weekend at the Sarasota 2k with a fifth-place overall finish from the 2V4 boat with the other three boats picking up first-place finishes in their respective B and C Finals.

"We feel like we bounced back pretty well from our ORCI performance," said head coach Derek Copeland. "The competition is rising at this race and we're glad to be in the thick of it. We faced Miami and UNC in the Friday heats and we knew they'd be quick based on what we saw a couple of weeks back. We couldn't close in on them during Friday's racing and that seemed to get in our heads."

"Saturday, though, all of the boats seemed to take some lessons from the heats and kept their composure," Copeland continued. "This resulted in some really great racing in which we were able to come out on top of three of the four events, including in B and C Finals. The 2v4 had the best result of the weekend with a fifth-place overall finish, and we're very proud of them."

Louisville's 2V4 boat included Cardinals Angels Ventura Rodriguez, Claudia Smith, Addie Clark and Wilkey Smith, led by coxswain Zoe Desserich. After finishing second in its Friday heat, the boat advanced to the A Final and finished fifth overall in the women's Second Varsity 4 with a time of 7:45.85.

"The energy of this team going into racing was high and certainly translated out on the water," said Clark. "As a freshman, it's exciting to see the team making strides from previous years. We are excited for more meters and proof of what we've been working for."

The Cards representing Louisville in the Varsity 8 boat came in first in the B Final of the category turning in a 7:01.17. Out of the three finals, UofL's time was seventh-best overall.

"We were tested in many different ways this weekend," said captain and V8 coxswain Olivia Guarnaccia. "Even though it didn't' result in grand finals across the board, this weekend showed growth in ways we've been looking for since I was a freshman. It's done by finding ways to get our bow ball up when the pressure is high and the margins are small. My pride in this team comes from doing things like what we did this weekend."

Louisville's 2V8 boat also finished at the top of its respective B Final with a time of 7:32.75; the mark was eighth-best overall out of the three finals.

In the V4 C Final race, Louisville arrived across the finish line first at 8:24.17 on the clock. After placing first in the C Final, the time was 11th best out of the 19 boats in the class.

The Cardinals will be back in action in familiar Oak Ridge, Tenn., for the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association (SIRA) Regatta on April 17-18.

"I like where our girls are headed," Guarnaccia continued. "We're on a mission and it's time to dig in and keep our foot on the gas the next few weeks. I'm proud to be a Louisville Cardinal after this race weekend."

Varsity 8 – B Final
1 – Louisville (7:01.17); 2 – UMass (7:02.26); 3 – Tulsa (7:03.75); 4 – Boston College (7:06.08); 5 – MSU (7:07.56); 6 – Kansas (7:14.68)

Second Varsity 8 – B Final
1 – Louisville (7:32.75); 2 – Boston College (7:25.11); 3 – UMass (7:25.74); 4 – Tulsa (7:30.13); 5 – Kansas (7:30.73); 6 – MSU (7:32.19)

Varsity 4 – C Final
1 – Louisville (8:24.17); 2 – West Virginia (8:30.74); 3 – Drexel (8:39.49); 4 – MSU (8:40.59); 5 – High Point (8:53.88); 6 – Old Dominion (9:00.93); 7 – UAlbany (9:22.37)

Second Varsity 4 – A Final
1 – UCF (7:31.81); 2 – Miami (7:36.78); 3 – Dartmouth (7:39.85); 4 – Iowa (7:43.97); 5 – Louisville (7:45.85); 6 – Kansas (7:55.73)

Varsity 8
Coxswain - Olivia Guarnaccia
8 – Macy Whisenand
7 – Claire Carver-Ritter
6 – Grace Rodebaugh
5 – Haley Kunz
4 – Clara Jane Van Dyk
3 – Emma Bell
2 – Anna Brennan
1 – Lexi Bernard

Second Varsity 8
Coxswain – Hannah Cease
8 – Keira Krebs
7 – Mary Noschang
6 – Bradlie Hicks
5 – Ellie Fazio
4 – Lauren Stedry
3 – Cierra Chavez
2 – Dorka Szabo
1 – Jana Berelsmann

Varsity 4
4 – Olivia Koproski
3 – Stella Mancini
2 – Katherine Cromly
1 – Gabriella Allen
Coxswain – Cecilia Kern

Second Varsity 4
4 – Angels Ventura Rodriguez
3 - Claudia Smith
2 – Addie Clark
1 - Wilkey Smith
Coxswain – Zoe Desserich