Our Crimson Knights

Although the calendar said “May,” the weather seemed to disagree on Sunday, May 3, in Shrewsbury, MA. Cloudy skies, temperatures in the low 50s, and a ripping tailwind out of the northwest led to difficult racing conditions on Lake Quinsigamond, and the Knights did their best to handle and surpass the challenge. Competitors included host St. John’s High School, along with St. John’s Prep, Boston College High School, Shrewsbury High School, and Chaminade.

The third boat race included two Chaminade crews, St. John’s High, BC High, and St. John’s Prep. Salisbury started clean in the rough water, but early in the race Chaminade, St. John’s Prep, and BC High pulled ahead. After the Knights took a small lead on St. John’s HS in the first 500 meters, their lead increased when the St. John’s crew caught a boat-stopping crab. Through the middle of the race, the leading crews added to their advantage, while Salisbury maintained a lead over St. John’s of a length or more. In the last 500 meters, the Knights did their best to hold their lead, keeping pace with St. John’s, but a boat-stopping crab of their own in the last 250 meters allowed St. John’s to reclaim momentum. The Knights crossed the line in fifth place, ahead of Chaminade B and only half a second behind St. John’s.

The second boat race also saw an eventful final 500 meters, this time in Salisbury’s favor. As in the third boat race, BC High and Chaminade jumped to an early lead, but the Knights dug into a back-and-forth battle with St. John’s and St. John’s Prep. Through the middle 500, St. John’s began to open up a lead, taking several seats before the 1,000-meter mark. As the Knights crossed the orange buoys marking 500 meters to go, stroke Vaughn McAuliffe ’27 led his crew to increase their already-aggressive stroke rating and begin a sprint to the finish line. Salisbury ate into the St. John’s lead, drawing level by the 250-to-go point, and didn’t look back. The crew surged in the final stretch, taking a lead of nearly three-quarters of a length, and crossed the line in third place, about two seconds ahead of St. John’s.

Conditions were about as rough as they could get for the start of the first boat race. The Knights charged off the line, taking a small lead over the field in their first 20 strokes. As the crew settled into the body of the race and hit their stride, they developed a stronger sense of rhythm and began to steadily press away from their competitors. With stroke Matt White ’26 holding a strong-but-controlled pace at about 37 strokes per minute, the Knights extended their lead over St. John’s and BC High to a full length in the middle third of the race. In the last 500, Chaminade made a strong push from the second-place position, taking a few seats back from Salisbury’s lead, but the Knights responded and held their margin through the finish line, securing first place by just over one second, and open water ahead of the rest of the field. 

-Written by Assistant Coach Mantegani

After a long road trip to New Jersey for the Mercer Sprints, the Knights were back on Lake Washinee on Saturday, April 25. Salisbury welcomed Fairfield Prep for their second home race of the season, and with cool temperatures and a moderate cross-headwind out of the southwest, course conditions were calm, if not ideal. 

The third boat saw their first official action since their race against Brunswick on April 11, after a scrimmage with Rumsey Hall on April 22. Facing Fairfield’s 3v and 4v, the Knights jumped off the line and took an early lead, gaining open water on the Fairfield 4v in the first 250 meters. At the 500-meter mark, Salisbury led Fairfield’s 3v by about a length, but the Jesuits were not ready to give in. Fairfield reduced the margin to about three seats by the 750-meter mark, and with a surge heading into the final 500 meters moved ahead. The Knights did their best to fight back in the last 500, but were unable to match Fairfield’s sprinting speed; a jumped slide in the final 200 meters added to the margin, and Salisbury crossed the line in second place, well ahead of the Fairfield 4v.

The second boat race also saw Salisbury take an early lead. After a tough race at the Mercer Sprints the previous weekend, the crew was looking to regain some momentum and close out a solid week of training back home by putting together a complete race. The Knights didn’t hesitate to do just that, taking a length in the first 500 meters, and then continued to press. With stern pair Luke Feller ’26 and Lane Gaidos ’26 setting a controlled but decisive pace, Salisbury continued to grow their lead through the middle 500. As the crews passed the gazebo peninsula that marks just over halfway through the course, Salisbury had increased that lead to more than two lengths, and at 500 to go had added more. With a strong push to the finish line in the last 500, the Knights finished off a convincing victory, besting Fairfield by sixteen seconds.

The first boat race was the main event of the afternoon, and the Knights were well prepared. With 1v coxswain Will Wilkinson ’27 away, Luke Lacilla ’27 pulled double duty, piloting both his 2v crew and the 1v, and after securing a victory in his first race of the day, he was ready to add another. Salisbury took control from the “Go” command, gaining the lead in their high strokes off the start, and never looked back. Moving ahead by open water in the first 500 meters, the Knights shifted into a strong rhythm at 36 strokes per minute, and continued to extend their lead. Passing the gazebo, Salisbury shifted up, pressing further away with each stroke. A confident sprint through the final 500 meters saw the Knights cross the line well ahead of Fairfield, securing a decisive win.

With a solid day of racing in the books, the Knights will now prepare for two upcoming six-boat races, tests of grit and composure for both the coxswains and rowers. Up next is the Koshivos Cup on Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, MA, hosted by St. John’s High School. Competitors will include Boston College High School, St. John’s Prep, Shrewsbury High School, and Chaminade. 

Written by Assistant Coach Mantegani

Varsity crew hosted their first home race of the season against Brunswick and Lawrenceville, and although Lake Washing was a bit choppy, the strong wind out of the northwest (cross-tailwind) made for fast racing conditions.

The 3v race started the afternoon, with Brunswick jumping out to an early lead through a combination of an impressively high stroke rating off the start and clean rowing. Although the Knights gave up an open-water lead in the first 500 meters, stroke Harun Koentjoro ’26 set the tone by staying composed, helping his crew settle into more of a rhythm as the race developed. The crew stayed committed through the middle of the race, only allowing Brunswick to slightly increase their lead entering the last 500 meters. This was the first full 1500-meter race for the crew as a unit, and they showed great potential for the rest of the season to come.

The 2v race also saw Brunswick take the lead off the start. Salisbury held contact through the first 250 meters, and maintained an aggressive pace as they moved ahead of Lawrenceville. Through the middle 500, Brunswick and Salisbury continued to press away from the third place crew, with Brunswick gradually extending their margin at the front. The Knights fought hard through the last 500 meters, moving several lengths of open water ahead of Lawrenceville, but were unable to match Brunswick’s speed in the second half of the race. Their competitive spirit was strong throughout, though, and set the tone for the final race of the day.

The 1v race between Salisbury and Brunswick is contested for the Curtis Trophy, named in honor of longtime Salisbury coach Dick Curtis and celebrating over 20 years of spirited competition between the two schools. Brunswick head coach John Martin noted after the race that the trophy has changed hands ten times over the years, a signal of how closely-contested this race often is. Last year’s 1v race saw the Bruins earn a victory with a strong mid-race move, reversing an early Salisbury lead. This year’s race started similarly, with Salisbury moving hard off the starting line to take a 2-seat lead in the first 250 meters. At the 700-meter mark, with Salisbury ahead by about 3 seats, Brunswick again began to press. The Bruins took back half a seat, but in the stern of the Woody Rutter Salisbury coxswain Will Wilkinson ’27 and stroke Matt White ’26 knew how to respond. The Knights absorbed Brunswick’s move and, without raising their stroke rating, hit back – as the crews entered the final 500 meters of the race, they took back that half seat and added another to their lead. With a move at the 500-meter mark to commit to a strong finish, the Knights began to open it up, extending their lead to a full length in the sprint to the line. In the final strokes, the Rutter’s stern just broke open water over Brunswick, securing a victory and the return of the Curtis Trophy back to Salisbury for the eleventh time. 

After the race, co-captain Reid Barry ’26 spoke to the importance of the Brunswick rivalry for the 1v and the program as a whole: “After watching the 1^st boat lose last year, we wanted that back. We were all prepped, and…as the race went on I was just getting more and more pumped.” Co-captain Pierce Baskin ’26 added, “I know how great of a program Brunswick is, and…the rivalry is never really one-sided.” “We had a great week of preparation, and it all just came down to trust in our guys. Not for a second did I think we would lose that race.” The day’s racing was a mark of the program’s speed at the top end, as well as a solid building block for the younger 2v and 3v. With the Curtis Trophy back in the Curtis Boathouse for another year, the team’s focus turns to next weekend’s Mercer Sprints in West Windsor, NJ, where the 1v and 2v will compete.

-Written by Assistant Coach Mantegani

The Knights traveled to Methuen, MA for their first race of the spring, against Phillips Andover. Unfortunately, strong and increasing wind blowing against the current created choppy conditions leading both teams to agree to change from a standard race to a series of shorter scrimmage pieces. Despite the change in format, the afternoon provided a valuable early-season test against strong competition, and the Knights too full advantage of the opportunity.

The third boat, with a lineup featuring six oarsman new to Salisbury rowing, along with returning rowers Harun Koentjoro ’26 and Theo Howell ’27, showed steady improvement in a series of pieces against Andover’s third and fourth boats. After getting their bearings in a 4:00 piece down the racecourse, the Knights regrouped on the second piece (2:00 against the current) to finish about level with the Andover 4v, and finished strong on the final 3:00 piece with the current, holding onto a lead over the 4v, and staying competitive with the Andover 3v by holding contact into the final minute. This was the first experience racing another team for most of the crew, and the young Knights improved their rowing and their competitiveness as the afternoon progressed.

The second boat, led by returning coxswain Luke Lacilla ’27, started strong in the first of their four 2:00 pieces against Andover’s 2v, taking a win. The Knights held Andover to a narrow margin in the second and third pieces, and a slightly larger lead in the fourth. Undaunted, the crew showed competitive fire in their final piece of the afternoon, a 1500 meter race, staying within half a length through 1200 meters before Andover managed to open up a larger lead in the final 300 meters, winning by open water. The crew’s resilience and strong potential stood out, and they raced well against a tough opponent.

In the final pieces of the day, the first boat showed that although they will be undersized compared to many of the top NEIRA crews, they are still a crew to be reckoned with. Salisbury took a narrow win in the first piece, 2:00 off a start. The Knights then opened things up in the second piece, surging to an open-water margin in just two minutes. The third 2:00 piece saw a similarly aggressive approach from the crew, with coxswain Will Wilkinson ’27 leading the crew to a strong half-length win even as Andover tried to surge back. Andover was able to take a win in the final 2:00 piece of the day, but the Knights came off the water feeling confident about the speed, composure, and competitiveness in taking three out of four pieces against the 2025 NEIRA fourth-place

All in all, this was a strong start to the spring season for the team, and all crews came off the water feeling good about their efforts and motivated to continue building on the progress made so far. Next up is a home race against perennial rival Brunswick on Saturday, April 11, with the 1v aiming to reclaim the Curtis Trophy.

-Written by Coach Mantegani