Both Massachusetts Maritime crew teams opened the spring portion of the 2009-10 season with solid performances against host Amherst and Franklin Pierce in South Hadley, Mass. on Saturday morning.

The Buccaneers had the top two squads in the women’s novice four and women’s second novice four, as the tandem of freshmen Alicia Tarr (Danvers, Mass.), Emma King (Princeton, Mass.), Janeen Manghis (Nantucket, Mass.) and Delphine Estebe (Pompano Beach, Fla.) took top honors under the guidance of freshman coxswain Tess McNally (Marstons Mills, Mass.) in a time of 10:01.0.  Sophomore Emily Welsh (Shelton, Conn.) and freshmen Gretchen Kramer (Stafford, Conn.), Danielle Guidry (Nashua, N.H.) and Lauren Denapoli (Boston, Mass.) placed second under the direction of sophomore coxswain Angella Esposito (Dorchester, Mass).

On the men’s side, Massachusetts Maritime placed second in both the novice four and second novice four.  Freshmen Chip Vaivarins (Plymouth, Mass.), Tom Young (Longmeadow, Mass.), Will Walsh (Yarmouth, Maine) and Robert Meyer (Marietta, Ga.) finished as runner-up in the novice four under the watch of freshman coxswain Jay Mitchell (Swannanoa, N.C.), while fellow freshmen Jonathan DeMeo (Hanover, Mass.), Matthew Mourey (Franklin, Mass.), Devin McNeil (Westford, Mass.) and Craig Lohr (Mashpee, Mass.) posted a second place finish in the second novice four for the Buccaneers, led by freshman coxswain Tim Matchett (Smithfield, R.I.).

The men’s varsity four consisting of seniors Chris Duarte (Seekonk, Mass.) and Erik Foley (Charlton, Mass.), junior Jason Ellershaw (Chester, Mass.) and freshman Christian Martyn (Beverly, Mass.) placed third with a time of 7:08.3 under the guidance of junior coxswain Philip Gulino (Weymouth, Mass.).

Both Buccaneer squads will compete at the UMass Lowell Regatta on the Merrimack River on Saturday morning.