ITHACA, N.Y. – The Colgate women's rowing team competed in the Autumn Classic on Saturday, competing against Ithaca, Cornell and Syracuse on the Cayuga Inlet. The final race of the fall season saw the Raiders' 1v8 boat head into winter training on a high note with a stellar third-place finish with a time of 26:47.26. 

"This was the longest race of the season for our team, and for many, they raced twice in the span of two hours which was certainly a difficult challenge for any athlete," Head Coach Jim Lister said. "Our boats rowed technically and aggressively as was the plan for race day, and the continued goal will be to increase our fitness over the next several months during winter training." 

Other Colgate boats rowed well including the Novice-8 crew which held its own in a field with the Division III powerhouse Ithaca and power-five program Syracuse. 

"Performance wise, we want to measure ourselves with our peer programs," Lister continued. "We narrowed the gap with Cornell from last weekend's Head of the Fish Regatta and raced faster than a nationally-ranked Divison III school in Ithaca College." 

The Raiders now enter the winter training period of the season, next competing in a spring training trip at Clemson University in January.