ORLANDO - UCF rowing’s I Eight has been named Big 12 Boat of the Week after a dominant performance at the Sarasota 2K last weekend.
This marks the second time in program history that the Knights have earned the conference honor, the last time being the II Eight for the week of April 3, 2024.
The boat consisted of junior coxswain Audrey Vilendrer, as well as freshman Sofia Naboni Nevado, fifth-year Madlen Markova, senior Bella Montalvo, sophomore Brigitte Kappler, fifth-year Elisa Faiola, freshman Lucy Buckingham, junior Natasjia Voulanas and senior Hannah Lovejoy.
The Knights’ I Eight started the Sarasota 2K completing the sweep of heat races for UCF on day one, finishing with a time of 6:37.31 to claim first place. The crew finished ahead of Iowa (06:41.38), Tulsa (06:48.13), UMass (06:59.29) and High Point (07:01.58).
The next day, the I Eight secured another first place finish, crossing the line in the Grand Final at 6:27.05. The Black and Gold earned the victory ahead of Dartmouth (06:29.97), No. 20 University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (06:30.58), Michigan State (06:32.55), Iowa (06:34.18) and Miami (06:37.01).
“Really proud of how well this boat handled being down off the start,” head coach Mara Allen said. “It’s a mature group, I’m looking forward to seeing them continue to improve.”
The I Eight will compete next this weekend in Oak Ridge, Tenn. at the Rocky Top Invitational on April 4 and 5.