After winning a gold medal in the previous regatta, Manhasset's Girls Junior Four looked to repeat their performance at the New Jersey Scholastic Rowing Championships in Cherry Hill. The boat was rowed by Nellie Panzner, Marina Kajic, Taylor Ferrara, Calli Giannopolous, and coxed by Kira Kennedy - all of which are sophomores participating in a junior event. The girls rowed exceptionally well in the morning qualifiers beating all of their opponents and securing the best racing lane for afternoon finals. In the finals, Manhasset fought St. Anthony's all the way down the 1500 meter race course for the leading position but weren't able to hold on as St. Anthony's late spurt won the event. St. Anthony's win will be short-lived as Manhasset seeks revenge this coming weekend.
Although the Girls Junior Four did not win the race, they achieved an even greater accomplishment by winning an automatic bid to National Championships. Manhasset will be one of 24 teams in the country to row in the event, which will take place in Saratoga at the end of May.
Other top performing boats for Manhasset were the Boys and Girls Varsity Fours who both qualified for the petite finals in their events. The Girls Lightweight Four missed qualifying for their final by only one second. Manhasset will practice hard this week as they prepare for the Long Island Championships in Bayville on Saturday, May 6.