WSU Crosses the Finish Line at
Nationals
This Sunday, Cougar Crew finished off their sprint season with the final day of racing at the ACRA Championships in Lake Lanier, GA. The day started with some weather delays, including thunder and lightning on the race course. Due to the weather concerns, many third, fourth, and fifth level finals were cancelled, including the Men’s Varsity Pair that WSU competed in. The Men’s Varsity 8+ C/D/E finals were also initially cancelled, but were later reinstated at the end of the day.
When the weather cleared up and racing kicked off, the first boat that rowed for WSU was the Women’s Varsity 2x in the grand finals. The two rowers pulled aggressively as they competed to earn the team our first medals. In the end, the double finished in third place behind Cal Lightweight Rowing and William and Mary. For Senior and Women’s Commodore, bow seat Katie Fowler, this represented her third consecutive year medaling at Nationals, while for stroke seat sophomore Alyx Powell, it was her first ACRA hardware.
“Today, Alyx and I were excited to go out for many reasons,” Fowler said, “however two stand out to me. First off, I wanted to give Alyx another shot at winning a medal at nationals since she had an asthma attack last year during the grand finals. Secondly, this was my last race as a member of Cougar Crew. As someone who went to nationals all 4 years while on the team, rowing a 2k in a double was by far the hardest, but also rewarding.”
The next Cougar boat to race was the Men’s Lightweight Novice 4+. The four lightweight rowers finished in fourth place, one spot short of medaling. Nonetheless, the lightweights had an aggressive, hard-fought race, and finished fourteen seconds behind winner Rhode Island.
The Women’s Novice 4+ was the next boat for WSU to compete. Fighting in a fast B final against crews such as Ohio State and UC Davis, the four battled hard and came in sixth place, within a few seconds of west coast rival Davis’s finish.
The Men’s Novice 4+, who had earned a spot in the A final on Saturday, was faced with a tough competition including leader Michigan. In an impressive battle between the some of the fastest freshman fours in the country, WSU crossed the finish line in seventh place overall, defeating Penn State by two seconds and making a name for WSU in the freshman openweight category.
With all the novice boats done racing, the focus for WSU turned to the two varsity crews remaining, the 1V4+ and the 1V8+. The 4+ kicked off their race in the B final to determine their placement in the top 16 crews. In a nail-biting competition against a wide field including Santa Barbara and Vermont, the crew finished in sixth place, good for 14th overall place in the regatta.
“It was a really fun and competitive race,” bow seat freshman Eric Furrer said. “We went back and forth with the other crews the whole time.”
Last but not least was the Men’s 1V8+, in the D finals. Fellow West Coast rivals Western Washington and the University of Colorado also raced in this event. In the end, the top varsity crew, three of them graduating seniors, raced their final race hard and finished in sixth place.
Cougar Crew had an exciting and eventful trip in Georgia this weekend. The rowers gained valuable experience on the national stage and finished their spring season. All of us would love to extend a special thank you to the parents, fans, and supporters who traveled with us and showed how important this program is to so many of us. See you in the fall!
ACRA Day 2 Lineups and Results
Men’s Varsity 8+
C- Ridge Peterson
S- John Michael Najarian
7- Matt Elliott
6- August Boyle
5- Donovan Labriola
4- Zach Morgan
3- Devon McCornack
2- Sam Callan
B- Nate Endebrock
6th Place-7:18.92
30th Place overall
Men’s Varsity 2-
S- Ramiro Gonzalez
B- Ryan Gehring
Did not race today due to weather conditions
Men’s Varsity 4+
C- Sidney Cross
S- Alexander Ashton
3- Sean Cornia
2- Brett Pelan
B- Eric Furrer
6th Place- 8:04.12
14th Place overall
Men’s Novice 4+
C- Vee Feyling
S- Trevor Zook
3- Daniel Moguel
2- Payton Schorn
B- Connor Hoeksema
7th Place- 7:37.43
7th Place overall
Men’s Novice Lightweight 4+
C- Albert Chafin
S- Jose Zuniga
3- Alex Welch
2- Bjorn Elliott
B- Dylan Baty
4th Place- 7:39.87
4th Place overall
Women’s Novice 4+
C- Natalie Ferguson
S- Jolee Rocca
3- Kiera Magrane
2- Melissa Weatherhogg
B- Harlow Bronstein
6th Place- 8:55.65
14th Place overall
Women’s Varsity 2x
S-Katie Fowler
B- Alyx Powell
3rd Place- 9:13.41
3rd Place overall
Cougs Race Through the First Day at
ACRA
The Cougar Men and Women both raced today at the ACRA National Championship regatta. Every boat raced at least once. First up today was the Men’s 1V8+, who competed in a time trial to determine placement in further races. Completing their time trial, the Cougs advanced to the Repechage heats.
Next up was the Women’s 2x. Senior Katie Fowler and Sophomore Alyx Powell raced against four other boats in their heat. Smashing the competition, Fowler and Powell took first by twenty seconds, which earned them a place in the grand final tomorrow.
The Men’s Pair raced next. Juniors Ramiro Gonzalez and Ryan Gehring faced a field that included Virginia, Georgia Tech, and Minnesota. The two fought hard, earning a fifth place finish. The Women’s Novice 4+ followed the pair, racing to determine whether they continued to finals or reps. The Women took seventh place, finishing thirty seconds ahead of the eighth place crew. Next up was the Men’s Novice 4+. Racing with fire in their eyes and finals in their minds, the openweight crew led by stroke seat Trevor Zook took second place.
“It felt really good,” Zook said after the race, “we were understroking the other boats.”
The openweight novice men will continue to the finals tomorrow. The Men’s Lightweight Novice 4+ followed their teammates in a race to determine lanes for the straight finals. Finishing in fifth, the lightweights will race in the finals tomorrow morning.
The Men’s V8+ returned to the race course in the afternoon to race their Repechage heat. Racing against a field of schools from around the country, the crew was also faced with the challenge of rowing against a stiff headwind. During the race, the V8+ had a hard-fought race with a heart-stopping finish, ending up in sixth place just a couple seconds behind the fourth and fifth place crews and less than twenty seconds behind leader Notre Dame.
“I’m glad one of my last races was fought so hard,” said senior 7-seat Matt Elliott. “We gave it our all and it showed when we walked through Illinois at the 750 meter mark.” He added “I’m just happy to be rowing here at Lake Lanier with my team and fellow seniors for one last hurrah.”
The 1V8 will race in the fourth level final tomorrow.
The Men’s Pair raced for the second time today this afternoon in a Repechage race. The two third-year oarsmen finished in seventh place and earned themselves a place in the C final.
In an exciting race, the Women’s Novice 4+ came in fourth in their Rep heat. Finishing only four tenths of a second behind UC Davis, the novice women will race tomorrow in the third finals.
“We would have had them,” stroke Jolee Rocca said, “if we had one more stroke.”
Lastly, the Men’s V4+ fought to earn a spot in the semifinals for tomorrow. Racing against crews such as Penn State and Notre Dame, the men won their place by taking second in their Rep. Just two seconds off of first place Penn State, the 4+ will race tomorrow morning to fight for a place in the grand finals.
Cougar Crew will race again tomorrow. Live video, times and results will be posted at https://www.americancollegiaterowing.com
ACRA Day 1 Lineups and Results
Men’s Varsity 8+
C- Ridge Peterson
S- John Michael Najarian
7- Matt Elliott
6- August Boyle
5- Donovan Labriola
4- Zach Morgan
3- Devon McCornack
2- Sam Callan
B- Nate Endebrock
6:48.94 (time trials)
6th place- 7:05.22 (Repechage)
Will race at 9:24 am tomorrow (D final)
Men’s Varsity 2-
B- Ryan “Paste” Gehring
S- Ramiro Gonzalez
5th place- 8:48.59 (heat)
7th place- 9:37.07 (Repechage)
Men’s Varsity 4+
C- Sidney Cross
S- Alexander Ashton
3- Sean Cornia
2- Brett Pelan
B- Eric Furrer
5th Place- 8:17.79 (heats)
2nd Place- 7:36.10 (Repechage)
Will race at 8 am tomorrow (semifinals)
Men’s Novice 4+
C- Vee Feyling
S- Trevor Zook
3- Daniel Moguel
2- Payton Schorn
B- Connor Hoeksema
2nd Place- 7:49.46 (heats)
Will race at 10:46 am tomorrow (A final)
Men’s Novice Lightweight 4+
C- Albert Chafin
S- Jose Zuniga
3- Alex Welch
2- Bjorn Elliott
B- Dylan Baty
5th Place-8:29.00 (heats for lane position)
Will race at 10:20 am tomorrow (Finals)
Women’s Novice 4+
C- Natalie Ferguson
S- Jolee Rocca
3- Kiera Magrane
2- Melissa Weatherhogg
B- Harlow Bronstein
7th Place-9:38.19 (heats)
4th Place- 9:52.31 (Repechage)
Will race at 10:28 am tomorrow (B final)
Women’s Varsity 2x
S-Katie Fowler
B- Alyx Powell
1st Place-9:21.10 (heats)
Will race at 9:54 am tomorrow (Finals)
SPRING TRYOUTS NOW IN PROGRESS
All Athletes Welcome!
4th Floor of Hollingbery Fieldhouse (next to Mooberry Track)
No experience needed.
Email Coach Ericsson at wsucrewcoach@gmail.com if you have any questions.
New teammates, tough workouts, exciting races ahead!
Cougars Finish Their Last Strokes of the Fall Season
This afternoon the Washington State Men’s Crew faced off against the Gonzaga Bulldogs on the Snake River. Conditions were calm waters with a light tailwind on the 5000 meter time trial course.
The Cougar’s First Varsity 8 (1V8) rowed hard to hold off Gonzaga throughout the race, but unfortunately Gonzaga was still able to pass them at the end. The V8 rowed their second fastest time of the season, coming in at a 16:40.33 seconds behind their rivals.
The 2V8 held off Gonzaga for the first half of the race, but Gonzaga started walking through them during the second half. The 2V8 posted a 17:37.62 seconds behind their competition. The WSU 3V8 finished with a time of 18:35.
The First Novice 8 (1N8) once again showed their dominance this season against Gonzaga by completing their fall racing sweep and came across the line with a time of 17:05, winning by 15 seconds
The 2N8 was a lightweight lineup, raced the course in 18:32.The 3N8 followed with a time of 19:33.
Head Coach Arthur is extremely impressed with his new recruits and how they have done this fall. He stated “It was rewarding to see all three boats have a solid race to end the fall season. This should provide motivation for the training so that we can capitalize on the spring sprint races. We have a strong A boat which has been able to defeat Gonzaga in all three fall races this year, and a solid group of novice lightweights."
Cougar Crew now heads indoors for winter training and to prepare for the spring racing season.
Results
Varsity 8
GU 16:07.0
WSU 16:40.5
2nd Varsity 8
GU 16:35.2
WSU 17:37.5
WSU-C 18:35.4
Novice 8
WSU 17:04.9
GU 17:20.1
WSU-B 18:32.1
WSU-C 19:32.9
Cougars Race Hard at the Head of the Lake
11/7/2016
Cougar Crew had five entries in Seattle at the 37th annual Head of the Lake regatta on Sunday. The men's team entered three boats in the event, the Varsity 8, Junior Varsity 8 and 3rd Varsity 8.
The Varsity Eight crew started off the event against a seven team field that included Washington and Gonzaga. The varsity finished with a time of 18:19.172, six tenths of a second ahead of Oregon. The Junior Varsity Eight took on another seven team field. The JV finished with a time of 18:21.017, finishing ahead of Oregon by three seconds. Both boats finished in sixth place.
With six entries in the 3rd Varsity Eight race the Cougars finished in fourth place with a time of 18:59.709, beating Gonzaga by 29 seconds. Coach Arthur stated “the race was a solid performance and offered important exposure to faster programs. We were fortunate to have Gonzaga in front of us for the first half and nipping at our heels on the second half to keep us from being complacent.”
The Cougars men's crew will host Gonzaga for the Head of the Snake this Sunday to cap off the fall racing season.
The club women sent out two boats for this weekends race. The women’s double went out first against a large and stacked field, they finished with a time of 30:15.150. The Varsity 8 was up next and raced in the Women’s Open Eight heat. Racing in rougher conditions than most of the rowers beforehand, the women were still able to have a solid race and finished with a time of 24:38.840.
