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May 25, 2007
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – The Virginia women’s rowing team advanced all three of its boats on Friday (May 25) during the first day of competition at the 2007 NCAA Women’s Rowing Championships on Melton Hill Lake.
Virginia’s second varsity eight and varsity four boats won their heats and advanced directly to Sunday’s (May 27) Grand Finals in those competitions. UVa’s varsity eight crew finished a close second in its heat and advanced to Saturday’s (May 26) semifinals.
“I was very pleased with the effort of all three of our boats today,” said Virginia head coach Kevin Sauer. “We are fortunate to have won the second varsity eight and varsity four heats. Those boats will compete in the Grand Finals on Sunday and have tomorrow off.”
Brown’s varsity eight edged UVa by a tenth of a second in the first 2,000-meter heat of the day. Brown finished with a time of 6:30.54 and Virginia’s time was 6:30.64. Harvard finished third in the heat with a time of 6:36.08 followed by UCLA (6:37.23) and Central Florida (6:45.29). The times by Brown and UVa were the two best times in the three varsity eight heats on Friday. Virginia’s varsity eight boat was comprised of Melanie Kok, Sara Lippa, Katrin Sydlik, Lauren Hutchins, Augusta Stratos, Libby McCann, Kerry Maher, Jennifer Cromwell and coxswain Caitlin Mixter.
“In the varsity eight, Brown raced a great race and nipped us at the line for first in our heat,” Sauer said. “We’re looking forward to Saturday’s semifinal.”
Virginia’s varsity eight semifinal race on Saturday has Stanford in lane one, UVa in lane two, Southern California in lane three, Notre Dame in lane four, Ohio State in lane five and Tennessee in lane six. The other semifinal race features Harvard in lane one, Minnesota in lane two, Brown in lane three, Yale in lane four, Dartmouth in lane five and Princeton in lane six. The top three finishers in each semifinal advance to the Grand Final on Sunday.
Virginia’s second varsity eight boat surged ahead in the second 500 meters and expanded on its lead in the final 1,000 meters to win its heat by more than four seconds. The UVa crew had a time of 6:48.77 and California was second in 6:53.13. Washington finished third in the heat with a time of 6:57.39 followed by Southern California (6:58.08), Harvard (7:00.80) and Princeton (7:01.39). The Cavaliers’ second varsity eight boat was made up of Anna Samaha, Andria Haneman, Kelsie Chaudoin, Heather Gardner, Emelia Colman-Shepherd, Desiree Burns, Yvonne Epp, Bridget Fowler and coxswain Michelle Ellison.
UVa’s varsity four crew moved ahead in the first 500 meters and expanded its lead over the next 1,000 meters to win its heat by more than nine seconds. The Cavaliers finished in a time of 7:34.48 and Southern California was second in 7:43.75. Washington finished third with a time of 7:50.03 followed by Minnesota (7:53.51), Harvard (7:54.24) and Tennessee (7:55.80). Virginia’s varsity four boat was comprised of Chrissie Monaghan, Amanda Chase, Rebecca Ryall, Mindy Fiesler and coxswain Mary Eddy.
The 2007 NCAA Women’s Rowing Championships continue through Sunday.