Five Cavalier Rowers Earn CRCA Honors

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May 22, 2006

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Five members of the University of Virginia women’s rowing team have been honored by the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association.

Juniors Heather Gardner (Flintstone, Ga.) and Melanie Kok (Catharines, Ontario) were named to the first-team All-South Region, while junior Kerry Maher (Welland, Ontario) earned second-team all-region accolades. The three Cavaliers each rowed for UVa’s nationally ranked varsity eight crew.

A three-time ACC champion, Gardner was a member of the second varsity 8 crew that won the 2005 NCAA Championship. Team tri-captains, Kok and Maher were 2006 All-ACC honorees. They helped the varsity eight to the 2006 ACC championship.

Junior Chrissie Monaghan (Flanders, N.J. ) and sophomore Michelle Ellison (Cincinnati, Ohio) were named to the CRCA’s National Scholar Athletes List for the 2006 season.

A national champion and ACC gold medalist, Monaghan is studying history, while coxswain Ellison is majoring in nursing. The duo rowed for UVa’s second varsity eight crew which won the 2006 ACC championship and was named the Crew of the Year.

The Scholar Athlete awards recognize student-athletes with a 3.5 cumulative GPA or higher that competed in 75 percent of her team’s 2006 spring races. Also, the student-athletes must be upperclassmen (2nd, 3rd, or 4th year) in terms of eligibility and their head coaches must be good standing members of the CRCA.

A total of 135 student-athletes from 50 different schools were honored for their efforts during the 2006 season. The Mid-Atlantic Region produced 44 selections amongst 16 different schools.