The RIT women's crew team finished fifth in the Collegiate Eights event at the 52nd Head of the Charles Regatta on Sunday. The Tigers battled gusting winds for one of their best finishes in program history at the world's largest two-day regatta.

In a 28-boat field, RIT's varsity eight navigated the 3-mile Charles River course in a time of 18:36.962. After finishing tenth last year, RIT was awarded the No. 9 bow ball and over the course of the race put distance between them and No. 10 Trinity and closed on No. 8 Tufts. The Tigers finished 23 seconds behind fourth place Bates. Wesleyan posted a winning time of 18:04.538, followed by Ithaca and Williams.

The Tigers' varsity eight was powered by coxswain Francesca Scumaci, Amy Guthrie, Lauren Asselmeyer, Colleen Ryan, Tiffany Cao, Taylor Blackwell, Claire Thomas, Emma Will and Colleen Albert. This is the third consecutive year RIT has finished in the top 10 in the event.