At the Cleveland Rowing Foundation on Friday, September 20, as the sun was fading to the west, Saint Ignatius Crew dedicated a brand-new state-of-the-art Vespoli VHP 4-man racing shell. Donated by the Cleary family, whose sons rowed for the Wildcat Navy in the 1990s, the shell was christened “Anne”—for Mrs. Cleary.

The next day, at the annual Head of the Cuyahoga Regatta in Cleveland, the rowers from Saint Ignatius powered that boat to victory—one major highlight in a day filled with several other gold-medal wins and many other podium finishes.

All told, Saint Ignatius won gold in the Varsity 8, Varsity 4, 2nd Varsity 4 and Lightweight 8 events. The team’s 3rd-ranking varsity boat earned a silver medal in the 2nd Varsity 8 event, and the Freshmen earned a bronze medal in the Novice 8 event.

The Varsity 4 victory in the Anne was special for a variety of reasons, but even more noteworthy because that crew finished with the fastest time of the day for any 4-man racing shell—topping even collegiate and adult masters teams.

And yet, the team’s crews that did not garner medals showcased the hard work and depth that have characterized the 86-rower Wildcat Navy as it starts a new year. For example, the 2nd Varsity 8 Crew raced up against other teams’ first-ranking boats and still finished fourth overall. Similarly, the Wildcat Navy’s 4th Varsity 8 finished fifth against other programs’ 2nd-ranking crews.

The four other Freshman 8-man crews competed well in their first-ever regatta and earned 4th, 9th, 14th and 16-place finishes. That bronze-medal winning Saint Ignatius boat was a mere 2 seconds out of first, so those rowers will be hungry to eliminate that gap in the coming weeks.

Other solid performances were turned in by the 2nd Varsity 4 – B entry, the Novice 4, and the Lightweight 4.

The team’s top-to-bottom performance earned it the boys team youth points trophy. For the moment, that checks off one of the team’s early season goals: Defend the Land.

Next, Saint Ignatius will head to Westerville on October 12 to race at the Hoover / Columbus Fall Classic. Stay tuned. You can follow the Wildcats all year long on Instagram and Twitter at @sihsrowing. Let’s Go Cats!