Kansas’ 1V4 collects Big 12 Boat of the Week honors

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas’ First Varsity Four was named Big 12 Boat of the Week after its standout performance last weekend at the George Mason Invite, as announced by the league office on Thursday morning.

The Oread won its qualifying heat of the weekend after crossing the finish line in 7:31.30, 19 seconds ahead of second-place finisher West Virginia (7:50.28) and 39 seconds ahead of Old Dominion (8:10.56). With the first-place finish in open water, the Oread earned a lane in the grand final.

Coxswained by sophomore Liana Ochoa and powered by sophomore London Acree, sophomore Katie Donnellan, senior Michaela Theis and redshirt-senior Kelly Koenigsman, the Jayhawks continued their success with a victory in the grand final.

“Our lineups for the GMU Invite were shaken up with some injuries from the previous week,” head coach Carrie Cook-Callen said. “The athletes moving up did a really good job filling those seats and rising to the occasion against the competition.”

Kansas kept the momentum rolling as the Oread headed into the grand final, outracing Villanova and St. Joe’s to finish in 7:35.00 for its second win on the day. The Jayhawks finished nine seconds in front of the Wildcats (7:44.15) and 22 seconds in front of the Hawks (7:57.60) to take home the gold medal.

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