BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Western Washington University women's rowing team was well represented on the 2025 All-GNAC team with five student-athletes earning awards.

 

The list of accolades was headlined by senior Janisa Cook being selected as the Coxswain of the Year for the second year in a row and Sonja Gebhardt earning the Freshman of the Year honor. Three additional members of the conference-winning Varsity 8+ were first-team selections.

 

The Vikings in the Varsity 8+ clocked a time of 7:05.841 at the GNAC Championships, nearly five seconds ahead of second-place Cal Poly Humbolt.

 

GNAC first-team selections included stroke seat and 2024 CRCA Rower of the Year Mia Marie Knipe, seven-seat Emma Clark - who also received a first-team selection the year prior - and six-seat, All-American Taylor Wall.

 

Led by a winning performance by the Varsity 8+, the Vikings finished runner-up at the Great Northwest Athletic Conference on May 17 on Lake Natoma in Gold River, California. Western's Varsity 4+ earned the bronze medal to close out the team scoring 26 points to finish just one point behind GNAC Champions Cal Poly Humboldt.

 

WWU will next be in action May 30-31 at the NCAA Division II Rowing Championships on Lake Mercer in West Windsor, New Jersey. The Vikings are the defending national champions winning the ninth title in program history.

 

WWU Rowing is one of the elite collegiate rowing programs in the country across all divisions, having won nine NCAA Division II National Championships. The Vikings won the 2024 NCAA II National Title, the 2017 title, placed 2nd in 2018, 3rd in 2019 and runner-up in 2022. WWU has competed in the NCAA Championships in 21 of the 23 NCAA Division II national regattas (including 2025), taking home the gold (9 times), silver (5 times) and bronze (5) medal 19 times in the 22 years the NCAA Division II team title has been awarded, and reached the podium 19 times. Western won seven consecutive DII national championships from 2005-2011.

 

WWU Rowing Inside the Numbers:

21 – NCAA II Rowing Championship Appearances (out of 23)

16 – Individual Championships (Eight-7, Fours-9)

9 – National Championships (2005-11, 2017, 2024)

5 – National Runner-Up Finishes

5 – 3rd Place Finishes at Nationals

2 – GNAC Championships (in 5-year history of event)