The girls Varsity and Novice teams began their Fall season this month, coming out largely on top at the premier regatta. Racing against teams including Loyola and Milwaukee, all the New Trier varsity teams came in first save for the girls’ first varsity eight-person, “taking a close second to Milwaukee,” according to Senior rower Morgan Perce.

          The NT teams  have been eager to impress this season, especially since they have not had a real Fall season, much less any sort of Fall head race since 2019.

          But, they  have  not been sitting idly by all this time. The girls team has practiced hard nearly every day for this season.

“We practice a lot, not necessarily for this regatta… but in terms of time and practice we have two and half hour practices every day,” said senior rower Anika Roche.

          This regatta has been a long time coming, and so the rowers were confident going in this weekend as they’ve competed against these teams before. 

“We aren’t true rivals with them, but we do row against them very often so they are a good gauge of how we are doing early on in the season,” said Perce.

          This gauging is an important aspect of the season, as the team needs every advantage if  they’re to qualify for more prestigious regattas later on in the season including the Head Of The Charles 1v in Boston or the Blake Haxton a week later in Columbus. While both are  prestigious, the Head Of The Charles is the largest two-day regatta in the world. The girls team feels  confident that they will qualify this year and is hopeful for the season ahead. 

          While not a national or state-level competition, this month’s regatta was still an attraction for many, as the race course leads through the center of downtown Chicago. The many bridges crossing the river offer scenic overlooks of the race as well, allowing great pictures and often drawing many spectators. 

          The regatta has left the rowers feeling ready and excited for the coming Fall season, 

“This regatta was a really good way for all of us to get a feel for fall racing again and be together as a team,” said Perce.