October 14, 2025 By: J.P. Powers / Photos by Brian Smith, Wesley Darlington and Kristen Buckley
The weather on Sunday in Worcester was cold and drizzling, with cloud-filled skies that brought occasional high wind gusts. The inclement conditions threatened to derail the competition for dozens of teams that had brought boats to race in the Northeast Fall Championships. The difficult conditions mirrored what Hingham High Crew often deals with as one of the few teams who practice their craft by rowing on the Atlantic Ocean instead of in a protected inlet or river. Perhaps because they have been regularly honed by these challenging conditions, Hingham launched into the race more than prepared to perform at a high level.
Fearing that the fast-moving storm front might necessitate race cancellations, the race organizers moved several of the races up by a couple of hours in an attempt to beat out the storm. Little did they suspect that Hingham had brought the storm with them.
Hingham’s racing day opened with the boys first varsity 4+, as coxswain Brent Strauss, Hanley Stroka, Lachlan Knies, Lucas Mangili, and Nicholas Mangili charged off the line and beat nine other boats, including arch-rival Duxbury, to the finish. It was a tremendous start for the team, and a good indication that the boys are going to have a heck of a run next weekend competing at the Head of the Charles.
Next up, the girls first varsity 4+, with coxswain Maddie Owens, stroke Stella Gutierrez, Izzy Wagner, Coco Prohm, and bow Annie Sargent raced to a sixth place finish in their 20-boat race, securing a bronze medal as the third place high school in the race. The rowers in both the girls and boys 4+ races would later “hot seat” and race in the varsity 8+ races, an amazing feat of cardiovascular endurance.
The next race featured the boys novice 8+ with coxswain Reagan Puleo, stroke Miles McLucas, James Anderson, Colin Alexander, Taylor Bradl, Preston Molitor, Asher Ellis, Toby Vaishnava, and bow Diego Figueroa. The crew, which continues to look stronger and faster with each passing race, once again submitted a tremendous effort, beating a baker’s dozen competitors in the 22 boat field and looking very poised and confident in the tough rowing conditions.
Meanwhile, the girls’ first novice, with coxswain Grace Mullen, Anna Rubel, Megan Buckley, Lyla Wagner, Emma Gersack, Abigail Zimmerman, Ellie Reid, Annie Melia, and bow Aliyah Blidner, muscled past a half-dozen crews and grabbed a silver medal with a tremendous effort. The second novice, with coxswain Liv Wadleigh, stroke Susanna Grissom, Abby Farris, Claire Wang, Mariella DelSesto, Ali Rosetti, Kaitlyn Reera, Cora Blackwell, and bow Kaia Johnson, blazed past several boats and submitted a terrific time.
In the next race, the boys first varsity, with coxswain Brent Strauss, stroke Hanley Stroka, Nate Bradl, Lucas Mangili, Lachlan Knies, Spencer Farish, Oliver McLucas, Gerard Bottini, and bow Nicholas Mangili, despite half of the boat rowing their second race of the morning, powered past half a dozen competitors and into a strong finish. The boys, looking very strong and polished, will have a chance to show off their considerable skills at the Head of the Charles next Sunday.
The boys second varsity, with coxswain Henry Hoch, stroke Owen Cerrato, Landy Vittorini, Aedan Sullivan, Seph Darlington, Zakary Robbins, Ben Hansmire, Will Whitrap, and bow Michael Lane, blasted off the line with a fantastic start and never looked back. The boys, outpacing rivals St. John’s, Duxbury, and eight other boats, secured a hard-fought bronze medal.
The next race featured the boys third varsity, with coxswain Jordan Brown, stroke Jack O’Leary, Andrew Accettella, Michael Catalfano, Martin Seggev, Will Vanderweil, Huck Shaughnessy, Ben Ferguson, and bow Ryan Potter, as well as the fourth varsity, with coxswain Miles Figueroa, stroke Brendan Conroy, Fox Clarke, Sam Whitrap, Xavier Bogen, Liam Govoni, Euan Chesney-Douglas, Luca Arienti, and bow Eugene Purtell in a 13-boat field. The third varsity powered through the field and missed the medal stand by 2 ½ seconds, finishing just behind BC High. Meanwhile, the fourth varsity submitted a gutsy effort, racing past several boats and showing tremendous progress.
Boys Head Coach Dave Deluliis saw plenty of great things in the boys’ performances, “The boys turned in a strong performance this weekend, highlighted by a third-place finish from the second eight and a fourth-place finish from the third varsity eight. With competitive results across all boats, including the first eight placing 13th in a deep field, and the novice boys finishing 9th out of 22. The team continues to trend in the right direction as we approach our fall championship race.”
The girls first varsity, with coxswain Emily Gu, stroke Emme Beaudoin, Natalie Shaw, Louisa Orth, Eliza Powers, Sophia Santarelli, Thea Migliccio, Jane Melia, and bow Bianca Kiley, have looked faster and stronger with each passing week. In Worcester, the girls were dynamite. Rowing in an 18-boat field against powerhouses like CRI and rivals like Duxbury and Boston Latin, the girls were just about perfect. After passing most of the field, the Hingham girls went head to head against CRI, rowing with a furious intensity that proved indomitable. When the dust had finally settled, the Hingham girls had beaten every boat – even mighty CRI – to claim the gold. It was a tremendous win, and a great final tuneup for next week’s Head of the Charles.
The girls second varsity, with coxswain Maddie Owens, stroke Stella Gutierrez, Izzy Wagner, June Rogan, Annie Sargent, Coco Prohm, Ellie White, Maddie Kittinger, and bow Aubrey Fairfield, have seized gold in every race they’ve entered this season. Despite hot seating half of their rowers, Sunday was no different, as the girls blew the field away, finishing almost half a minute ahead of their nearest competitor. To date, the second varsity looks virtually unstoppable, as they have simply outclassed every single entry that has lined up against them. If they can continue to show similar improvements for the remainder of the season, they should be the prohibitive favorites at States in a couple of weeks.
The final race of the day featured the Hingham third varsity, with coxswain Ginger Niehoff, stroke Elsie Olin, Eme Bias, Rose Lovendale, Ava Kelly, Shelby Stroka, Hayley Kost, Anne Kyriss, and bow Lydia D’Arcy, and the fourth varsity, with coxswain Shayla St.Croix, stroke Neve Brown, Celia McCarthy, Veronica Webb, Peyton Burke, Lena Angel, Sasha Darmon, Kaylee Araujo, and bow Dillon Turner. The two Hingham entries proved to be the fastest in their heat as they battled back and forth for the lead. In the end, the fourth varsity powered through for an incredible gold, with the third varsity flying past the competition and securing a silver for an amazing 1-2 Hingham finish!
Coach David Martin thinks the Hingham team benefitted from the rough conditions that seemed to pose a challenge to the other teams, “What most teams saw as a miserable day on Lake Quinsigamond looked like perfect water to a Hingham crew raised on the rough, unpredictable chop of Hingham Harbor. While others battled the wind and occasional whitecaps, the Harbormen leaned into the storm. Rowing with grit and precision, they turned a Nor’easter into an ally — cutting through the chaos and crushing some of the region’s top club crews. For Hingham, it wasn’t bad weather; it was home water.”
Girls Head Coach Sydney Blasetti added, “What people don’t always see is how hard these girls work when no one is watching, the extra meters, the film review, the way they hold each other accountable. The results come from the daily grind and the belief they have for themselves and each other. It’s kind of funny, we practice long hours every afternoon, we’ve worked so hard for moments like this, and now that it’s happening, I almost don’t know what to say. These girls deserve every bit of it. They’ve shown so much heart, toughness, and commitment all season long. I’m so proud to be their coach. We’ve got two weeks until Championships, and we’re not done yet. We still have work to do. Go Hingham!”
The depth of the Hingham program is truly impressive, as almost all of the boats shined even amidst a huge field of competitors. Next Sunday, Hingham brings the first varsity girls 8+, the first varsity girls 4+, and the first varsity boys 4+ to the Charles to compete against an impressive mix of boats from across the country and beyond. For those interested in attending, the Head of the Charles is an incredible and unique Fall tradition. With the brilliant colors of Fall as a background, 11,000 rowers from all over the world descend on Boston to compete in an incredible series of races that last for three days. Rowing at the Charles is an incredible honor and a capstone of many rowing careers. More details can be found on the Hingham High School website, including start times and bow numbers, so you can follow all the action from the shore!
