After a strong showing at the Head of the Charles Oct. 20 against some of the toughest competition in women's rowing, the Blue Devils anticipated several first-place finishes at the Head of the Chattahoochee competition Saturday in Gainesville, Ga.
But Duke's visions were disrupted by a surprisingly strong Tennessee team, which finished third in the championship 8+ race with a time of 18:25.0, only six tenths of a second ahead of a disappointed Blue Devil squad.
Though Duke did finish first in other events, including the club eight and mixed four, freshman Kim Bailey said the team had hoped for stronger finishes overall.
"We were pleased, but we were hoping we would do a little better," Bailey said. "Our races [at Head of the Charles] were really strong. We were expecting them to be even stronger over the weekend."
Many of Duke's boats raced for the first time this season at the Chattahoochee. In the novice singles, Duke's three entries swept second through fourth place, an impressive accomplishment.
Several other boats finished well in the competition: Novice eight was ninth with a time of 22:39; club four finished second behind Tennessee with 21:04.1; senior Amelia Booth got 12th in championship singles in a time of 25:06.8; and the championship double teams finished sixth, eighth, 12th and 17th.
Despite a number of strong performances, Bailey said the team's preparation was concerned with its overall finish at the regatta.
"Our team's attitude was to go out there and row hard," she said. "We were all hoping to do well and come out with a strong performance as a team."
The Head of the Chattahoochee event concludes the Blue Devils' brief fall season. The team now heads into winter training, with the rowers intent on building on the strides made in the fall.
"We're going to focus on being consistent," Bailey said. "We want to be intense and focused so that we're ready to go in the spring."
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