Stotesbury Cup Regatta
By Brie Goodly ‘26, Editor-in-Chief; Edited by Isabella Perco ‘26, Staff Editor
It’s that time of year again, Ridley’s rowers took their annual visit to Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River to compete at the Stotesbury Cup Regatta! Held in this historic city, the Stotesbury Cup regatta is the largest high-school regatta in the world, drawing in thousands of rowers each year. This year marked the 98th annual regatta, which was truly unlike last year’s, but that didn’t stop Ridley from claiming victory!
The traditional schedule for the Stotesbury Cup consists of two days of racing, with most events requiring three races to occur before winners can be announced. A day of time trials for every boat race occurs before the semifinals and the finals. However, this year’s trip to Philly was marked by some eventful weather changes that led to the eventual cancellation of the semifinal and final races. Heavy rainfall and the flooding of the Schuylkill River ended up changing the duration of this year’s regatta, leading to prizes being presented based solely on time trial results. Despite the interruptions and the harsh winds, this did not discourage our rowers one bit. Our determined rowing teams refused to let the weather determine their races, and all the crews from the women’s team brought back medals to prove it! Congratulations are in order for the Senior Women’s Double, the Senior Women’s Lightweight Four, and the Junior Women’s Four!
This unprecedented conclusion was truly extraordinary, especially because this regatta has only cut its races short few times in the past. Knowing that our Ridley crews continued to persevere makes the victories much sweeter. Our Senior Women’s Double was able to claim the first-place prize in their tough race. Their strength was able to push them ahead in the exclusive time trial race, later being awarded the Lovey Farrell Award, the first-place prize in the Senior Women’s Double category. The lightweight rowers might be tiny, but they are mighty! Ridley’s lightweight girls proved themselves by placing first in their event. The Lightweight Women’s Four had the privilege of receiving the Phyllis M. Graham Trophy, an honor, signifying this crew’s win. The Junior Women’s Four competed in the second most competitive events for girls at Stotesbury, with almost 50 boats competing against our Ridley crew. Despite the competitiveness, our Junior Four brought their all and were able to bring home a bronze medal, beating 43 boats! Let’s not forget about the men’s team though, their Junior Quad, Senior Double, and Senior Quad were spectacular contributions to the competitive races.
Out of hundreds of schools and thousands of rowers, Ridley continues to come out on top as consistent champions. Let’s make next year’s visit just as successful! Congratulations to every rower who competed in Stotesbury this May, Ridley couldn’t be prouder!
