Over 400 rowers descended upon Lake Moodemere for the Murray Rowing Association regatta, hosted by three local clubs.
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The two-day event saw Corowa's rowers make a splash, entering 61 crews and bagging 22 wins against some of the state's top competitors.
Day one
Day one kicked off with an 800m course. In the Female Masters quad scull, a Corowa crew of Tamasin Burch, Alex Conway, Susie Scott, Julie Underwood, and cox Edie Tomlinson set the tone. They led from the start, clinching the club's first victory.
The A-grade single scull final was an all-Corowa showdown. Brad Pearsall and Lachie Seymour, both heat winners, went head-to-head. In a nail-biting finish, Brad pipped Lachie at the post.
Newcomer Indi Hogan turned heads in her under-17 single scull debut. Facing three Barwon scullers, Indi showed she's one to watch, outpacing her competitors.
The Female C-grade double scull saw Corowa continue its winning ways. Clancy Tomlinson and Liz Sandow dominated both their heat and the final. Meanwhile, Imogen Tomlinson and Charlotte Packer secured a respectable third in their heat.
The club changed over to sweep rowing with a mixed four crew of Eva Broad, Alex Schultz, Lachie Hogan, Bella Heagney cox Hunter Mills. With a final of four crews, the Corowa crew rowed a great race to finish in second place.
The club’s male masters crew of Brad, Lachie, Simon McFarlane, Nick Wragge and cox Harvey McFarlane gave a head start to their older opposition. They rowed a well-timed race to catch the early leaders to record the win.
Alex Conway lined up in the first of the female master’s scull. Having her first race in four years she showed great technique to finish in second place.
Julie Underwood’s hard work at training paid off as she rowed a controlled race to hold off the rest of the field to claim her second win.
Indi and Charlotte teamed up for the Under 17 double scull, having their first row together the girls took the early lead and held on for the win against the Geelong crew.
The Male A grade quad scull featured Simon Lachie H, Lachie S, Brad and cox Hunter Mills.
The crew finished in second place in the heat to progress through to the four-crew final.
With less than a length separating the field the Corowa crew finished in third place. The club entered two crews in Female C grade quad scull, with the newest rowers Julie Smethurst, Eily Taylor, Claire Taylor teaming with Tamasin and cox Hunter Mills having their first race.
Gaining fantastic race experience the crew had a great first race to finish in fourth place.
The experienced crew of Imogen, Eva Broad, Phoebe Packer, Alex Conway and cox Edie won their heat and in the final finished second place.
Sommers Hogan has been working hard at training and was ready to get in her single scull in the B grade event. Sommers had a confident row in her heat to take the win and progress through to the final. The final featured four scullers as Sommers worked her way down the course to claim a great win.
The male masters crew in Nic, Simon, Lachie, Brad and cox Harvey converted to the sweep oared event and showed great technique rowing strongly to finish in second place.
The Male B grade double scull had a late change with Brodie Julian filling in and teaming up with Lachie Hogan. With two heats the Corowa crew settled into second place and progressed through to the final.
The final saw the Corowa take the early lead and turn the tables on their heat winners to claim a fantastic win.
Having two crews entered in the Female B grade quad scull event shows how strong our female rowing program is. The crew featuring Sommers, Anastasia, Phoebe, Bella cox Edie claimed their heat win to progress through to the final.
The second crew featured Indi, Imogen Wragge, Clancy Tomlinson, Imogen Tomlinson and cox Harvey continued the club’s winning way to join their club mates in the final.
Having two Corowa quads come down the course was a great sight with Bella’s crew holding on for the win and Imogen’s crew having a great row to finish third.
The club’s beginner female crew took part in their first regatta and featured Georgia Wragge, Julie Smethurst, Claire Abbott, Eily Taylor and cox Hunter Mills. The crew continues to improve with each row and finished second in their heat just missing out making the final.
The experienced female masters double saw Julie and Susie team up against a strong field. The Corowa crew had a great battle down the course with the Albert Park crew with little separating both boats the Albert Park crew held on for the win.
The mixed events are popular with the rowers as our masters teamed up Liz, Alex Schultz, Simon, Julie and cox Harvey rowed a great race to claim the win.
The open mixed crew of Eva, Brodie, Lachie Hogan, Anastasia and cox Edie continued the winning way in the mixed events by claiming the win. Brad and Lachie teamed up in the A grade double needing a top two finish to progress to the final.
Against quality opposition from Essendon, the crew finished second in their heat and third in the final.
The Female B grade doubles continued our great success with Anastasia and Sommers winning their heat, joined by Phoebe and Bella in the final.
A great race was on show as the two Corowa crews moved clear of the field and in the final sprint to the line Sommers and Anastasia held on to the narrowest of wins.
The Male C grade quad featured new rower Marcus Davies, Harvey, Nick, Brodie and cox Hunter lining up in the heat.
The crew showed great control as they had a confidence-building race to finish in third place. Day one’s racing finished with mixed double events with Julie and Simon in the master’s race saw the crew finish in second place.
The open events featured Imogen Wragge and Lachie Hogan who finished in third place and Anastasia and Lachie Seymour who finished in fourth place.
Day two
Day two kicked off bright and early at 7:00 am over a shorter 500m course.
The Female Masters’ Quad of Tamasin, Liz, Susie, Julie, and cox Edie proved they're no one-hit wonders, completing a weekend double.
Brad and Lachie faced stiff competition in the A-grade single heats, both finishing second and narrowly missing the final.
Indi continued to impress, finishing a close second to the Geelong sculler who had upped her game from Saturday.
Liz and Clancy, fresh from their Female C-grade double win on Saturday, claimed the weekend's double. Imogen and Charlotte stepped up their game, winning their heat and securing third in the final.
Corowa Rowing Club's success continued across the board in mixed events, masters’ races, and youth competitions. B-grade and C-grade events also saw standout performances, demonstrating the club's depth of talent.
The Open Mixed four of Imogen Wragge, Phoebe Packer, Lachie Hogan, Liam Fitzgerald and cox Hunter improves with each race to finish in third place.
The Male Masters quad of Nick, Simon, Lachie, Brad and cox Harvey had a great race winning by 1/2m to record another win for the weekend.
The new A grade double combination of Eva and Sommers wanted to test themselves against the best sprinters. The crew won their heat and, in a fantastic race finished strongly in third place.
Julie had a great battle with the Albert Park sculler, with little separating both scullers over the course Julie finished in second place.
The Corowa Female under 17 double crew, Indi and Charlotte, will keep improving with each race as the Geelong crew got out to the early lead. The Corowa girls worked hard but couldn’t close the margin falling just short on the line.
The Male A grade quad Lachie S, Lachie H, Simon, Brad and cox Harvey continued their great battle with the Essendon rowers as both crews moved clear of the rest of the field. The Corowa crew worked hard but the Essendon crew was too good over the sprint course.
The Female C grade quads featured the beginners crew of Georgia, Julie Smethurst, Claire, Eily and cox Hunter who had a great heat race to pass a crew and finish in third place.
The crew of Liz, Imogen W, Phoebe, Imogen T and cox Edie couldn’t reel in the fast-starting Mercantile crew who took the early lead to claim the win with the Corowa in second place and missing the final.
The Under 15 double combination of Harvey and Marcus had no race so the boys lined up in the C grade event. Gaining more racing experience the Corowa crew had a strong row to finish 4th in their heat.
Sommers continues her great success in the B grade single to win her heat and move through to the final. Adapting to the shorter course, Sommers had a fantastic row to claim the win.
The Male Master sweep oared four with the handicap system giving the older opposition a head start. The Corowa crew worked hard and in a close final finished in third place.
Lachie and Brodie lined up in the B Grade double coming a close second in the heat to progress through to the final.
Trying to replicate Saturday’s result the Corowa crew couldn’t reel in the leading double to finish in second place.
The club’s Female B Grade rowers lined up in the quad sculls. The crew featuring Charlotte Packer, Indi, Phoebe Packer, Imogen T and cox Harvey, were testing themselves against higher ranked opposition.
The crew had a strong row to finish in second place and progress through to the final.
With four quads lining up the Corowa crew were well placed in the race and with a final sprint to the line the crew finished in third place.
The crew of Eva, Clancy Imogen Wragge, Bella and cox Edie had a tough heat race with the Corowa crew and Geelong crews removed from the race for interference.
The female beginners crew had a crew change with Karsha Mills having her first race in 20 years, joining Julie Smethurst, Claire Abbott, Eily Taylor and cox Hunter Mills. The crew continues to improve with each session on the water to finish the race in second place.
The female master crew Susie and Julie improve on Saturday’s row to lead all the way to claim the win.
The Mixed Masters’ quad combination of Liz, Tamasin, Nick, Alex and cox Hunter offered the opportunity for family members to compete together to finish in third place.
The Open Mixed Quad continued the clubs win in this event with Lachie H, Clancy, Anastasia, Liam Fitzgerald and cox Edie leading all the way.
Brad and Lachie teamed up in the A grade double continuing their battle with the red-hot Essendon crews. In a tight race over the 500m course the Corowa combination finished strongly in third place.
The Female B Grade events have seen great success for the club with the double combinations Phoebe and Sommers and Bella and Eva lining up.
Both crews needed a top two placing in their heats to progress through to the final.
With both crews winning their heats it was a fantastic race as Bella and Eva held of the fast-finishing Sommers and Phoebe.
The result for Bella and Eva was a reward for their time racing together at HOSG and the great chemistry they have when they row together.
The club’s Male C grade crew Harvey, Marcus, Nick, Liam and cox Hunter keep working hard and their improvement was on show in the heat as the crew finished in third place.
Simon and Julie took the early lead and showed their class in the Mixed Masters double to claim the win.
The Open Mixed double saw new combination of Alex and Phoebe team up and showing great teamwork the crew finished in second place.
Harvey McFarlane lined up in the coxswains sculling event. Eleven-year-old Harvey showed great control and technique to move out with the leader and finish in second place. Harvey and Marcus will continue to train and improve for the Under 15 events at future regattas.
A club spokesperson said, “It takes a village to put on a regatta like this and for our rowers to compete. We're grateful for all the helpers who made it possible”.
With 1000m events at Nagambie and Geelong on the horizon, Corowa's rowers are already back in training. The club welcomes new members keen to dip their oars in.
The regatta highlighted individual achievements and showcased the strength of Corowa's rowing program, particularly in the female categories. From seasoned rowers to promising newcomers, the event provided valuable racing experience for all, setting the stage for future competitions.
The success at Lake Moodemere is a feather in the cap for Corowa's rowers and coaching staff.
As the club looks ahead to future challenges, this performance will undoubtedly boost confidence and motivation among its members.
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