#4 Tennessee Wins Three Gold Medals, Places Second at Inaugural SEC Championship

Sunday, May 11

Oak Ridge, Tenn. / Melton Hill Lake

9:05 AM

University of Tennessee

SEC Championships

#4 Tennessee Wins Three Gold Medals, Places Second at Inaugural SEC Championship

May 11, 2025 | Rowing

Results Photo Gallery

OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – With the first-ever SEC Rowing Championship on the line, the fourth-ranked Tennessee rowing team won three races and went stroke-for-stroke with No. 2 Texas Sunday at Melton Hill Lake in Oak Ridge, eventually placing second.

"It was really exciting to watch our team and cheer for them," head coach Kim Cupini said. "We just told the women that we wanted to have them in there and fight against Texas. We knew they were going to be fast."

The 1V8+ showdown served as the championship decider with Tennessee and Texas, two of the nation's top-four squads, battling for the title. The Lady Vols led the defending NCAA champions early, but crossed the line with a final time of 6:15.586, just over three seconds off Texas' winning pace (6:12.420).

Tennessee notched three total event wins in the conference's inaugural championship, along with a trio of silver-medal showings. The Lady Vol 2V8+ crew (6:24.809) delivered the team's biggest win of the day, holding off No. 2 Texas (6:26.430) to earn the SEC's first-ever 2V8+ gold medal.

Tennessee also swept the third varsity events, with both the 3V8+ and 3V4+ boats conquering the field consisting of the second-ranked Longhorns, No. 24 Oklahoma and Alabama. The UT third varsity eight crossed the line more than seven seconds ahead of Texas. In the day's first race, the Lady Vol 3V4+ boat edged Texas at the line by 0.215 seconds, one of the tightest margins of the day.

"The venue rocked," Cupini said. "Tennessee always rocks it at home, and to have such fans is awesome. Seeing fans of other schools, as well, was really cool."

The Longhorns narrowly got the better of Tennessee in both four races. In the 1V4+, the Lady Vols finished just over 11 seconds behind. The 2V4+ event saw Tennessee in striking distance, before Texas won by a three-second margin.

Up next, Tennessee awaits its NCAA Championship seeding, with the selection show set for Tuesday, May 20 at 5 p.m. ET. The national competition is slated for May 30–June 1 in Mercer, N.J.

Final Team Standings
1. #2 Texas - 83 points
2. #4 Tennessee - 78 points
3. Alabama - 35 points
4. #24 Oklahoma - 34 points

Race Results
1V8+:
1. #2 Texas (6:12.420)
2. #4 Tennessee (6:15.586)
3. #24 Oklahoma (6:31.921)
4. Alabama (6:36.331)

2V8+:
1. #4 Tennessee (6:24.809)
2. #2 Texas (6:26.430)
3. Alabama (6:43.847)
4. #24 Oklahoma (6:47.358)

1V4+:
1. #2 Texas (7:07.115)
2. #4 Tennessee (7:18.424)
3. Alabama (7:20.955)
4. #24 Oklahoma (7:30.897)

2V4+:
1. #2 Texas (7:12.120)
2. #4 Tennessee (7:15.377)
3. #24 Oklahoma (7:37.651)
4. Alabama (7:44.725)

3V8+:
1. #4 Tennessee (6:35.926)
2. #2 Texas (6:42.970)
3. Alabama (6:57.932)
4. #24 Oklahoma (7:00.702)

3V4+:
1. #4 Tennessee (7:19.123)
2. #2 Texas (7.19.338)
3. Alabama (7:58.842)
4. #24 Oklahoma (8:03.507)

Lineups
1V8+: Patricia Menendez (coxswain), Thea Coull, Alex Pidgeon, Riley Ferdelman, Alice Fahey, Meg Flanagan, Nicole Campbell, Maylie Valiquette, Hannah Smith

2V8+: Taryn Graves (coxswain), Channing Taner, Sheya Lavin, Abby Fowler, Stella Mirkovic, Ariella Jeffery, Hannah Richardson, Paige Reymann, Jamie Harris

1V4+: Mykayla Fluster (coxswain), Giorgia Borriello, Paris Thornburg, Ūla Jonušaitė, Elizabeth Peberdy

2V4+: Audrey Bast (coxswain), Sydney Harris, Kiana Worobey, Alexandra Axten, Bridget Sisul

3V8+: Laila Irigoyen (coxswain), Tiara Dye, Grace Armstrong, Emarie Peacock, Evelyn Hedrick, Emma Flanagan, Megan Wood, Ava Mulholland, Maiya Birdling

3V4+: Marissa Garcia (coxswain) Cailin Bolt, Kathryn Burton, Bernadette Lombardi, Maddie Becker

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