Raleigh, N.C. --- The Jacksonville women's rowing team traveled to North Carolina to face off against some of the best teams in the country as part of the Lake Wheeler Invitational. The Dolphins had five crews battle it out over three sessions Friday and Saturday.

"The Lake Wheeler Invite was a great event and I am so happy we chose to attend," JU head coach Mike Lane said. "We got knocked around a little, however we knew that would be the case as we looked at this regatta as great preparation for NCAAs."

Jacksonville's third Varsity 8+ opened the racing Friday morning, finishing in 07:47.163 in the opening heat. The second Varsity 4+ started their weekend, placing fourth with a 08:07.360. The first Varsity 4+ showed well in its opener, earning fifth with a time of 07:49.355.

The second and first Varsity 8+ crews wrapped up Friday's early slate. The second Varsity boat rowed a 07:09.816 to finish sixth, and the first Varsity boat finished in 06:51.028 for a sixth-place finish.

The afternoon wave started with a bang, as the third Varsity 8+ shaved over 16 seconds off their round one time, finishing in 07:29.871 to place fourth. The second Varsity 4+ also improved steadily from round one, finishing in 07:51.460 --- nearly 16 seconds better than the opening heat.

The first Varsity 4+ placed sixth with a 07:59.265. The second Varsity 8+ rowed in 07:01.344 and the first Varsity 8+ finished Friday with a sixth-place finish in 06:59.243. The third Varsity 8+ concluded their weekend with a 07:45.768, fourth-place finish in the final heat. The second Varsity 4+ finished with a 07:58.358, fourth-place finish. 

The first Varsity 4+ wrapped up the week with a 07:41.561 finish --- their best time of the weekend by nearly eight seconds. The second Varsity 8+ closed their weekend with a 07:06.769 finish, the crew's best finish of the week. The final race of the weekend came from the first Varsity 8+, who also turned in their best time of the trip with a 06:50.045.

Head Coach Mike Lane
"The Lake Wheeler Invite was a great event, and I am so happy we chose to attend. We got knocked around a little, however we knew that would be the case as we looked at this regatta as great preparation for NCAAs where the same thing happens on the first two days of racing. I was proud of the effort our women put in, despite not having the results we wanted. They showed up and gave a consistent performance each time. We learned a ton about how we plan to race as we head into our championship segment!"

Up Next
The Dolphins will next race in the Dad Vail Regatta in Pennsauken, New Jersey. The event starts May 9th, and race times and lineups will be announced closer to the start date