Rowing's First Varsity Eight Selected as Big 12 Boat of the Week

LAWRENCE, Kan. – The Big 12 Conference announced on Wednesday the selection of Kansas’ First Varsity Eight boat as the league’s Boat of the Week. The decision came after a strong showing at the Knecht Cup where the Jayhawks finished first in the Petite Final.

The award-winning boat began the Knecht Cup with an impressive outing in their first heat, finishing in first place out of five schools with a time of 6:45.64.

In the semifinal race, the Jayhawks missed qualifying for the Grand Final event by less than a second. KU crossed the finish line with a time of 6:54.08, earning third in the race.
Kansas headed to the Petite Final in its last race of the Knecht Cup. The Jayhawks outlasted Bucknell, Holy Cross, Temple and Duquesne to claim first place in the event with a time of 6:51.20.

The First Varsity Eight boat features  seniors Julia Alvey, Brooke Thuston and Claudijah Lever, juniors Maggie Duncan, coxswain Mary Slattery, Tessa Scott and sophomores Olivia Loney, Allison Schaaf and Maddie Irelan.

Fans can catch a glimpse of not only the First Varsity Eight, but the rest of KU’s great boats when the Jayhawks resume its spring competition on April 25 in Kansas City.

KUAthletics.com: The official online source for Kansas Athletics, Williams Education Fund contributions, tickets, merchandise, multimedia, photos and much, much more.