They are small but mighty, understated but influential, and have achieved more success than anyone dreamed possible.
Since its humble beginnings as a student-run club program in 2015, the Gordon College rowing team has become a sensation in the sport.
The Scots’ women’s team has won the American Collegiate Rowing Association (ACRA)’s National Championship Regatta in women’s 2x three straight years (2023-25) and has seen their share of success at Boston’s famed Head of the Charles Regatta.
This past spring, they took part in the IRA (Intercollegiate Rowing Association) National Championship Regatta, which featured boats from all over the country. Gordon’s LilyAnna Hopkins and Mara Sell took second place in the B final race.
They also had the opportunity to compete at the world famous Henley Women’s Regatta in June, one of just two American squads that participated in the highly competitive world of British collegiate racing. Gordon raced in the Academic Aspirational 4x event at Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire, England and placed eighth out of 21 teams.
“Oh my gosh, we went to England and competed there,” said senior Sarah Petrenko, emphasizing both ‘England’ and ‘competed’. She and Gordon teammates LilyAnna Hopkins, Quinn Arico and Emily Nerger took part, finishing second to eventual finalist University of London in their race.
“Incredible, unreal, ‘pinch me, I’m dreaming’ circumstances,” added Petrenko, who along with LilyAnna Hopkins won the ACRA women’s 2x national crown in 2025, besting both Michigan State and Oregon. “This experience reminded me why I love to compete and that I’m not ready to be done quite yet; this opportunity just gave me a launching-off point.”
“You never know how strong you are until you go up against the strongest,” added head coach Maddie Hopkins, whose team finished 10th in the time trails in England to advance to the next round.
“The whole course was lighting up as we were racing; it was so cool that this tiny school from Wenham was being cheered on by all these people on the shores of the Thames. It was truly a roar that didn’t stop the entire race.”
Other recent achievements for the Scots include earning their second straight gold medal at Philadelphia’s Jefferson Dad Vail Regatta — the largest collegiate regatta in the nation — in the Division 2-3 Varsity Four race for the second straight year.
Speaking to the right kids
Maddie Hopkins is a Gordon alum and oldest of nine sailing siblings who learned under the tutelage of their late father, Matt. She started the sailing program at the school as a nonprofit business as part of a class project.
“The athletic department really backed the vision; it wasn’t just a ‘cute idea’,” said Hopkins, who commuted to the Cambridge Boat Club as a Gordon freshman, where she met other locals who travelled into Boston to row. “We had water available on Chebacco Lake and we set up the program at school so that it wouldn’t be a financial drain.
“A year later, I was the fastest American single sculler (i.e., in a boat by herself) at the Jefferson Dad Vail. That sort of put Gordon on the map: ‘Wow, they’ve got a program.’ It just went from there.”
The school’s athletic department received an anonymous $500,000 grant to make it a varsity program in 2018, and Hopkins was hired as its head coach.
Getting the Gordon College Rowing Center property functional was the main thing; it had formerly been known as Camp Menorah, where Adam Sandler attended as a youngster.
Opening it up to the community in 2019 certainly helped. Thinking they might have five kids sign up, Hopkins was shocked when there were 36.
“There was obviously a need for it,” said Hopkins. “Our college team was so small, but it made all the difference to have a full boathouse. You’d walk into the locker room, and every locker had a name on it. You’re just part of the bigger rowing community. I’m not sure it would’ve fully taken off with the community aspect.”
With rowing fast the team mantra, Gordon did that and achieved more and more success each season. They found out quickly they could hold their own against larger, and much more established, programs.
Because there is lots of room to go across divisions (to face schools such as Boston University, MIT and Princeton, for instance) and the recruiting draw of the area, Gordon gets many rowers who could’ve gone Division 1 but chose to be a Fighting Scot instead. For some, it’s the chance to play one sport in the fall and row in the spring; for others they might want to study abroad, be involved in the arts, or simply because they are faith driven.
“That can really speak to the right kid,” said Hopkins. “I give a lot of credit to those kids who went fast early for us and deeply impacted our program moving forward.”
Then there was the legendary Class of 2024 women’s team, who “came in as freshmen and were just relentless,” according to their coach. Wanting to be the fastest Division 3 team, they set a goal of winning a national title and did so.
Seniors such as Tiana Fox and the coach’s sister, Lucia Hopkins (both two-time ACRA national champions in the varsity 2x) and Molly Jacobsen (2024 Dad Vail champion in the women’s 4x) paved the way, so much so that the program’s indoor space is now The Class of 2024 Training Room.
‘We’re not going to say no’
Faith and a love of the sport are two of the main reason student-athletes come to Gordon to row. Still, they each have individual stories of how they landed in Wenham and the success they’ve achieved there.
Take Petrenko. An English and Business major, she admitted Gordon was not her first or even second choice; she had fully committed to a Division 1 college in Philadelphia. But she was restless about that choice and eventually pivoted, feeling “it was more an option that chose me.”
“This program has exceeded my expectations each year,” said Petrenko. “It has been incredible to see myself and my teammates grow in confidence, both on the water and off the water.
“For instance, I had an incredibly difficult freshman year and didn’t think I’d return to rowing, let alone go on to win a national championship the following spring. But I had vibrant teammates who pushed me forward and a coach who consistently reminded me that I had everything that it takes to succeed.
Quinn Arico, an incoming sophomore, said she was drawn to Gordon not only because of its Christian Ministry program, but also because she could play volleyball and row for the Scots while staying on top of her schoolwork.
In her first year rowing since 2023, Arico learned to skull this past spring. She lists her proudest moment as being on the team that won gold at Dad Vail in Division 2/3 four, beating out Union for the top spot at the biggest intercollegiate regatta in the US.
“In high school, rowing was more competitive and less enjoyable. At Gordon, I learned that you can be competitive and work hard while still having fun and choosing to make the most out of hard workouts,” said Arico. “Gordon’s rowing team has exceeded my expectations in every way: I love the team and have gotten really close with the girls, (and) Coach Maddie is amazing and very encouraging. I look forward to every practice and opportunity to compete.”
Hopkins, who made history with her siblings when they honored their father’s legacy at the 2024 Head of the Charles by rowing together in a single 8+ boat (and are signed up to do so again this October), is also excited about the upcoming men’s college rowing season. They qualified for nationals a year ago but ultimately didn’t go, something they want to rectify this time around.
“Our sophomores have matured in a lot of ways, and we have some really fast freshmen coming in,” said Hopkins. “Building the men up to be like the women’s team is a big project; I’m really excited about it.”
While the women have not attended nationals since first qualifying, they’ve gotten faster and stronger each year, said their coach.
“We’re not going to be afraid of growing and seeking new opportunities in this program,” Hopkins stated. “If something new pops up, we’re not going to say no.”
Contact Phil Stacey
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