Bruggeman, an All-American at Notre Dame who got her start in the sport with the Dayton Boat Club, made her Olympics debut after not getting on the water as an alternate in Tokyo in 2021. Her team finished the course in 6 minutes, 19 seconds.
Romania won the heat in 6:12.31 and advanced to the final. Italy finished third in 6:28.47.
In the other preliminary heat, Great Britain (6:16.20) finished first and secured a spot in the final. Australia (6:18.61), Canada (6:21.31) and Denmark (6:39.30) followed.
Bruggeman and the U.S. team will next race in the repechage, which gives teams a second chance to qualify for the final. The race starts at 4:10 a.m. ET on Thursday.
One team from this group will join Romania and Great Britain in the final: the United States; Italy; Australia; Canada; and Denmark. The final on Saturday will start at 4:50 a.m.
In addition to Bruggeman, the U.S. team includes: Charlotte Buck, of Nyack, N.Y.; Christina “Nina” Casatagna, of Princeton, N.J.; Olivia Coffey, of Elmira, N.Y.; Claire Collins, of Greenbrae, Calif.; Margaret Hedeman, of Concord, Mass.; Regina Salmons, of Methuen, Mass.; and Madeline Wanamaker, of Neenah, Wisc.
All rowing events are taking place at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium on the east side of Paris.
In other Olympic news involving local athletes:
• Former Dayton Flyers forward Mariah Perez played four minutes Sunday for Puerto Rico in a 58-55 loss to Serbia. She tallied one assist.
Puerto Rico trimmed a 19-point deficit entering the fourth quarter to two points in the final minute but fell short of completing the comeback.
Puerto Rico continues group state play at 11:15 a.m. (ET) on Wednesday and then plays China at 5 a.m. Saturday.
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