WSU Men’s Crew Competes at Opening Day
By William Miedema
5/5/2013
Saturday, May 4th, WSU Men’s Crew top varsity and novice eights competed in the Opening Day Regatta on the Mountlake Cut, Seattle, Washington. The Opening Day Regatta has been a major part of the Seattle Yacht Club’s Opening Day ceremonies since 1987. This year marked the third year in a row that WSU competed in the regatta.
The first race for WSU was at 10:34 with the men’s collegiate open eight event, in which the Cougars took 3rd of 4 teams, finishing with a time of 6:29, about 3 seconds behind the second place finisher, University of British Columbia. The Cougars second and final race of the day started at 11:05 with the men’s freshman collegiate eight event, where the novice finished 4th of 4 with a time of 6:46. Head Coach Arthur Ericsson had this to say about Saturday’s race, “It was good that we had British Columbia as a rabbit to chase. We gained more valuable race experience and it was most enjoyable event.”
V8+ racing through the cut.
The Cougars will continue to prepare for the upcoming Pac-12 Championship Regatta held on Lake Natoma, Sacramento, California May 19th.
WSU Men’s Crew Heads to Opening Day
By William Miedema
5/3/2013
On May 4th, the WSU Men’s Crew team will begin their season with the Opening Day Regatta. This will be the third year in a row the Cougars have competed in the Opening Day Regatta, part of the Opening Day Ceremonies, which marks the start of the Seattle yachting season. The regatta takes place on the Montlake Cut, Seattle, Washington.
The Cougars will be sending two boats, the varsity eight who will be racing at 10:34AM and the novice eight who will be racing at 11:05. The varsity eight will be competing in the men’s college open eight division against University of British Columbia, University of Washington, Oregon State University, and Pocock Rowing Center. The novice eight will be competing in the men’s freshman eight event against University of Washington “A”, University of Washington “B”, Oregon State University, and University of Victoria.
V8+ during the 2012 Opening Day Regatta
Line ups:
Varsity 8+
1. Tyler Larson
2. Curtis Treiber
3. Max Vaughn
4. Alex Weatbrook
5. Orion McCabe-Gould
6. William Miedema
7. John Gehring
8. David Herrick
C. Danielle Mertens
Novice 8+
1. Zach Jensen
2. John Dorscher
3. David Kessler
4. Jake Brisson
5. Alex Dugan
6. Matt Brady
7. Josh Benson
8. Michael Sheremet
C. Alex Felton
Cougar Crew Wins Two Championship Events
By William Miedema
4/29/13
This past weekend Washington State University (WSU) Men’s and Lightweight Women’s Crew competed in the Western Intercollegiate Rowing Association (WIRA) Conference Championships. All races were held on Lake Natoma, Sacramento, California. Race conditions were calm, with the weather remaining clear and in the mid to high 80’s throughout the weekend.
Saturday the men’s novice four took 5th out of 6 for their heat race and 6th of 7 in their third final, both times beating out University of California Davis. The novice eight was able to qualify for grand finals by placing 3rd in their heat race, pulling a 6:26.4. The second varsity was able to qualify for petite finals on Sunday finishing 4th place in their heat. The varsity eight qualified for grand finals taking 3rd in their heat with a time of 6:09.3, 0.3 seconds behind University of California Irvine. The varsity pair took 4th in their heat, qualifying for petite finals later that afternoon in which they also took 4th place.
Sunday’s racing began with the men’s novice lightweight four finals only event. The lightweight novice four (Austin Ebert, Jake Brisson, Michael Sheremet, Jeff Arnevick, Hayden Wise) won their event by 25 seconds over second place Orange Coast College. After the great finish by the novice lightweight four the men’s novice eight grand final event took place in which they took 5th out of 6, beating out funded program University of California San Diego. After the novice eight the second varsity eight was up in their petite final event. After a rocky race the second varsity lost a close battle for second place to University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) who pulled a 6:26.4, edging out the Cougars by 2/10th of a second. The final race of the day for the men was the varsity eight grand finals event. The varsity eight came off of the line several seats down to early race leaders UCI, UCSB, and OCC. Throughout the race UCI and UCSB continued to pull away from the field while the Cougars battled it out with Western Washington University (WWU) and OCC for 4th place. By the thousand meter mark the Cougars had walked through WWU and were fighting for third with OCC and University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), but by the 500 meter mark UCLA had walked away from WSU and OCC. In the final sprint OCC was able to hold off the Cougars who finished with a time of 6:14.3, 3 seconds behind OCC.
The lightweight women novice 4+ raced twice Saturday posting an 8:27.3 in heats and a 9:26.8 in their final. On Sunday, the Varsity 4+ put up a time of 8:30, with Stanford’s B boat approximately 12 second ahead. WSU’s women’s pair consisting of Shayla Boyle and Breanna Trimble posted a time of 8:32.1, taking first place by a boat length. For the pair, Shayla Boyle stated, “It was a solid race. This is something we’ve wanted since our race last year and being able to accomplish it with your best friend sitting behind you is very rewarding. It was a great race and great way to finish out our season.”
Cougar Crew Searches for Success in Conference Championship
By: Jaz Gill and Bre Trimble
4/26/2013
Cougar Crew looks to advance in its spring racing season this weekend at the Western Intercollegiate Rowing Association (WIRA) Championship regatta. This event is hosted by the Sacramento State Aquatic Center on Lake Natoma near Rancho Cordova, CA. With heats and lane draws assigned, races are set to begin starting Saturday April 26 going through Sunday April 27. The Cougars will kick off racing with the men’s novice four at 9:10 AM going down the 2,000 meter course.
Com
ing off of a competitive battle with Gonzaga in Spokane last weekend, the guys are determined to find success at this regatta. Head coach Arthur Ericsson, “we’ve been flying just under the radar this year but if the collective will shows up on the starting line, I am confident that we will exceed our seedings.” The novice men are going into WIRAs with a similar drive as the varsity. “We are looking forward to the chance to test ourselves in the conference championship. The eight in particular is eager to reverse the result from last week’s Fawley Cup,” stated novice coach Giles Dakin White.
During the conference championship last year, the Cougars had two boats advance onto the grand finals. The varsity eight and novice eight both fell short of medaling positions. Cougar Crew found success in the lightweight women’s pair event. The pair raced in an open weight event and brought home a silver medal.
The Lightweights Women also are headed down to Sacramento, CA for their final regatta of the season. This year at WIRA they will be fielding boats in the Lightweight Varsity 4+, Novice 4+, and Pair 2- events. With their last race of record at the San Diego Crew Classic, the Lightweights are hoping to cap the year off with a few season best times as well as a good base to build off of going into the fall.
In the days leading up to the race, Coach Dan Thayer said that “racing is fun and this weekend really gives them a great 2k experience. I’m really looking forward to cheering the athletes on”. Training all season for this weekend, the Lightweights are focused and excited to see what the competition brings to the regatta from the West Coast. Coxswain, Sidney Cross said that “she’s excited to have an event lined up with a lot of boats across” and anticipates to see how well her crew stacks up against Stanford’s two 4+’s that are entered to race in her event.
The Novice 4+ races on Saturday at 9:40am, while the Varsity 4+ races in a final only on Sunday at 9:30am, and the Pair 2- on Sunday as well at 9:00am.
Varsity Men
1V 8+ Saturday, 11:10 AM
1. David Herrick
2. Paul Lund
3. William Miedema
4. Orion McCabe-Gould
5. Max Vaughn
6. Alex Weatbrook
7. Chris Kimball
8. Eric Demaris
C. Danielle Mertens
2V 8+ Saturday, 10:00 AM
1. Joe Lillis
2. Curtis Treiber
3. Tyler Larson
4. Lee Peha
5. Kevin Harris
6. John Gehring
7. Kenji Thompson
8. Nathan Mauren
C. Kammi Moniz
V 2- Saturday, 12:20 PM
1. Jaswinder Gill
2. John Dingman
Novice Men
N 8+ Saturday, 11:40 AM
1. Zach Jensen
2. John Dorscher
3. David Kessler
4. Griffin Berger
5. Alex Dugan
6. Adam Ziegler
7. Josh Benson
8. Matt Brady
C. Ashley Vomund
LWT 4+ Sunday (Final Only), 8:20 AM
1. Austin Ebert
2. Jake Brisson
3. Michael Sheremet
4. Jeff Arnevick
C. Hayden Wise
HWT 4+ Saturday, 9:10 AM
1. Tim Van den Heuvel
2. Ryan Mather-Haaland
3. Beau Baker
4. Trevor Paul
C. Alyssa Kodoma
Varsity 2-
2-Shayla Boyle
1-Breanna Trimble
Varsity Lwt 4+
4-Cassie Morgan
3-Sarah Doumit
2-Allison Thomas
1-Danielle Volk
Cox-Sidney Cross
Novice 4+
4-Simone Parker
3-Sami Wilson
2-Ashley Vu
1-Teresa Nguyen
Cox-Robin Weigel
WSU Men’s Crew Falls Short at Fawley Cup Dual
By Jaz Gill
4/20/2013
Friday afternoon the Cougars headed to Medical Lake in Spokane, Washington for the annual Fawley Cup Dual with Gonzaga University. Race conditions throughout the afternoon were overcast with a moderate cross tail wind.
Racing began at 5:15pm with the second varsity event in which the WSU second varsity boat pulled a strong 6:20.1 2,000 meter piece, but fell short of Gonzaga by nearly nine seconds who pulled a 6:11.3. The second varsity gave up critical meters to Gonzaga due to a poor start, but they eventually found their rhythm and power which they were able to effectively apply to the remainder of the race. The next race was the priority event, which decides the winner of the Fawley Cup Trophy, the men’s varsity eight event. Both varsity eights had strong starts, but within several hundred meters Gonzaga had gained approximately two seats on the Cougars. The Cougars were able to take a slight one seat lead within the second 500 but lost it by midrace when Gonzaga was able to make a powerful move to which the Cougars weren’t able to counter. From the 1,000 meter mark through the finish Gonzaga was able to open their lead to about one boat length over the Cougars who finished with a 5:59.6 to Gonzaga's 5:55.8. Head coach, Arthur Ericsson, had this to say about the varsity and second varsity races, “The V8 was not able to settle into cadence pace and as a result could only try to hang on by the 1,000 meter mark. The 2V8 established good rhythm but they gave up precious ground off the starting line.”
Varsity 8+
In the novice eight event WSU was up on Gonzaga off the start line and was still within half a length at 800m. The two crews drifted into each others water and Gonzaga emerged from the slight clash with a length lead which they maintained mostly to the finish line, winning by a length and a half., finishing with a time of 6:21.7 compared to the Cougars 6:28.1. Following the novice eight event was the novice four and WSU pair event. In the mixed race was one Gonzaga novice four, two WSU fours, and one WSU varsity pair. The pair was placed in this race as an exhibition event, since Gonzaga was unable to field a pair to compete with the WSU pair. Once again the Cougars fell short to Gonzaga, who were able to finish the course in 7:22.5 compared to WSU’s novice “A” four which finished in 7:28.7. The pair was able to hang with the fours for the first 1,000 meters of the race until ultimately falling behind the top two fours, but were able to hang on and beat the novice “B” four across the line with a time of 8:01.6 nearly six seconds faster than the novice “B” four.
Lineups:
Varsity 8+
1. David Herrick
2. Paul Lund
3. William Miedema
4. Orion McCabe-Gould
5. Max Vaughn
6. Alex Weatbrook
7. Chris Kimball
8. Eric DeMaris
C. Danielle Mertens
Second Varsity 8+
1. Joe Lillis
2. Curtis Treiber
3. Tyler Larson
4. Lee Peha
5. Kevin Harris
6. John Gehring
7. Kenji Thompson
8. Nathan Mauren
C. Kammi Moniz
Varsity 2-
1. Jaswinder Gill
2. John Dingman
Novice 8+
1. Zach Jensen
2. Matt Brady
3. David Kessler
4. Jake Brisson
5. Alex Dugan
6. John Dorscher
7. Josh Benson
8. Michael Sheremet
C. Alex Felton
Novice 4+ “A”
1. Austin Ebert
2. Adam Ziegler
3. Giffin Berger
4. Jeff Arnevick
C. Ashley Vomund
Novice 4+ “B”
1. Tim Van Den Heuvel
2. Ryan Mather-Haaland
3. Trevor Paul
4. Beau Baker
C. Alyssa Kodama
WSU Men’s Crew Headed to Spokane for Fawley Cup Dual
By: William Miedema
4/18/13
This Friday, April 19, the Cougars are headed to Spokane to take on Gonzaga University (GU) Bulldogs in the annual Fawley Cup Dual on Medical Lake, Spokane, Washington. The 2,000 meter races are scheduled to begin at 5:00pm with the varsity eight and conclude at 5:45pm novice 4+.
Last year the Bulldogs were able to edge out the Cougars by a close three second margin in the varsity eight event. The Cougars also fell short to the Bulldogs in the second varsity and novice “A” eight events. However the Cougars were able to find some success last year in the novice “B” eight event were they beat out the Bulldogs by over six seconds.
V8+ during the 2012 Fawley Cup
This year the Cougars will be looking to reclaim the Fawley Cup in the varsity eight event. Having posted competitive times at Cascade Sprints, San Diego Crew Classic, and the UW Apple Cup Dual the Cougars are primed and ready for this year’s Fawley Cup Dual. Third year oarsman David Herrick had this to say about the upcoming race, “having posted similar times to Gonzaga this season should make for quite a close race on Friday.”
Race Schedule:
5:00pm 2V8
5:15pm 1V8
5:30pm 1N8
5:45pm N4A, N4B, V2-
Lineups:
Varsity 8+
1. David Herrick
2. Paul Lund
3. William Miedema
4. Orion McCabe-Gould
5. Max Vaughn
6. Alex Weatbrook
7. Chris Kimball
8. Eric DeMaris
C. Danielle Mertens
Second Varsity 8+
1. Joe Lillis
2. Curtis Treiber
3. Tyler Larson
4. Lee Peha
5. Kevin Harris
6. John Gehring
7. Kenji Thompson
8. Nathan Mauren
C. Kammi Moniz
Varsity 2-
1. Jaswinder Gill
2. John Dingman
Novice 8+
1. Zach Jensen
2. Matt Brady
3. David Kessler
4. Jake Brisson
5. Alex Dugan
6. John Dorscher
7. Josh Benson
8. Michael Sheremet
C. Alex Felton
Novice 4+ “A”
1. Austin Ebert
2. Adam Ziegler
3. Giffin Berger
4. Jeff Arnevick
C. Ashley Vomund
Novice 4+ “B”
1. Tim Van Den Heuvel
2. Ryan Mather-Haaland
3. Trevor Paul
4. Beau Baker
C. Alyssa Kodama
WSU Men’s Crew Found Tough Competition in UW
By: William Miedema
4/12/13
V8+ Racing Against UW
Friday afternoon the Washington State Cougars battled it out on the Snake River against the University of Washington Huskies in the annual Apple Cup Dual. The Apple Cup Dual course spans 2,000 meters, starting upriver from the Lower Granite Dam and ending just off of the break water outside of the Ken Abbey Shellhouse. Race conditions throughout the day were generally calm, against a slight current, but a slight headwind picked up during the novice eight and the varsity four events. The weather was overcast, but it did not begin to rain until after all races had concluded.
Racing began at 4:35pm with the novice four event in which both of the WSU boats fell behind their UW rivals. Finishing place and time for the novice four event were as follows: UW-A 6:36, UW-B 6:46, WSU-A 7:10, WSU-B 7:17. The next event was the varsity eight in which the Huskies were able to out pull both of the boats fielded by WSU. Crossing the finish line in a time of 5:55.21 was the UW 3V8, followed by the WSU V8 in 6:06.78, and the WSU 2V8 in 6:32.64. An hour later both the WSU and UW novice were back out on the course, but this time they were in eight man shells. Again UW was victorious finishing in a time of 6:01, while WSU-A finished in 6:36, and WSU-B in 7:19. The final race of the day, the varsity four, started at 5:50pm and featured two WSU fours. The WSU-A boat was able to complete the course in 7:24.99 while the WSU-B finished in 7:57.10, but both boats fell short to the UW-A and UW-B who pulled a 6:58.50 and a 7:00.90 respectively.
Head Coach Arthur Ericsson had this to say about today’s racing, “The highlight for the varsity squad was the first 1000 meters when we were only one length down to UW after a mediocre start. However the 2V8 margin compared to the V8 was disappointing as was the drop off in our V4 A-boat. We need to decide if we're willing to pay the price on race day or the season will be over with nothing to show for it."
WSU Men’s Crew Takes on UW at Wawawai Landing
By: William Miedema
4/11/13
Friday, April 12th, Washington State University (WSU) Men’s Crew will be racing at their own course on the Snake River versus the University of Washington (UW) in the annual Apple Cup Dual. Races are set to begin at 4:35 pm with the novice 4+ and conclude with the varsity 4+ at 5:50 pm. The 2,000 meter course starts upriver from the Lower Granite Dam and ends just off of the break water of the Ken Abbey Shellhouse.
Coming off of a competitive weekend at the San Diego Crew Classic the Men’s Crew is looking to continue their early season success with a strong showing versus one of the most decorated rowing programs in the country, the University of Washington Huskies. Head Coach Arthur Ericsson commented, "If we can exploit our strengths and improve our weaknesses we will get a lot out of tomorrow's races and give UW some solid competition to deal with."
Last year the Huskies swept the event, most notably beating the varsity eight by a margin of 20 seconds. This year with a faster more experienced crew," noted junior William Miedema, "the Cougars will be looking to show the Huskies that they are a program that needs to be taken seriously."
Race Schedule:
4:35 pm MN4+ UW-A, WSU-A, WSU-B
4:45 pm MV8 WSU-V8, UW-3V8, WSU-2V8
5:45 pm MN8 WSU-A, UW, WSU-B
5:50 pm MV4+ WSU-A, UW-A, WSU-B, UW-B
Race Lineups:
Lineups:
Varsity 8
1. David Herrick
2. Paul Lund
3. William Miedema
4. Orion McCabe-Gould
5. Max Vaughn
6. Alex Weatbrook
7. Chris Kimball
8. Eric DeMaris
C. Danielle Mertens
Second Varsity 8
1. Joe Lillis
2. Curtis Treiber
3. Tyler Larson
4. John Gehring
5. John Dingman
6. Lee Peha
7. Kevin Harris
8. Nathan Mauren
C. Kammi Moniz
Varsity 4+
1. Max Vaughn
2. Orion McCabe-Gould
3. Chris Kimball
4. Eric Demaris
C. Danielle Mertens
Second Varsity 4+
1. Kenji Thompson
2. Jaz Gill
3. William Miedema
4. Paul Lund
C. Kammi Moniz
Novice 8 “A”
1. John Dorscher
2. David Kessler
3. Zach Jensen
4. Jake Brisson
5. Alex Dugan
6. Matt Brady
7. Josh Benson
8. Michael Sheremet
C. Alex Felton
Novice 8 “B”
1. Austin Ebert
2. Ryan Mather-Haaland
3. Alex Plonczak
4. Trevor Paul
5. Beau Baker
6. Adam Ziegler
7. Griffin Berger
8. Jeff Arnevick
C. Alyssa Kodama
Novice Heavyweight 4+
1. Zach Jensen
2. Josh Benson
3. David Kessler
4. Matthew Brady
C. Ashley Vomund
Novice Lightweight 4+
1. Austin Ebert
2. Jake Brisson
3. Jeff Arnevick
4. Michael Sheremet
C. Hayden Wise
Schedule Update
4/10/13
Attention: Due to weather forecasts with 20+ mph for Saturday 4/13/2013. The U.W. Dual has been rescheduled for Friday 4/12/13 starting at 3:40 pm. with final races wrapping up by 5:45 p.m. See schedule page for the racing schedule. Also Mom's Row has been cancelled due to weather.
Also Fawley Cup vs. Gonzaga will be held on 4/19/2013 on Medical Lake up in Spokane, WA. Preliminary race schedules have racing starting at 5 p.m. and wrapping up by 6:30 p.m. Stay posted for more accurate details on race schedules etc.
Cougar Crew Returns from San Diego Crew Classic
By: William Miedema and Shayla Boyle
4/8/13
This past weekend Washington State University (WSU) Men’s and Lightweight Women’s Crew competed in the 40th annual San Diego Crew Classic. All races were held on Mission Bay, San Diego, California. Conditions throughout the weekend were generally better in the early morning and degraded throughout the day due to tidal changes and increased cross wind. The weather remained overcast, but in the mid to high 60’s for the weekend as well.
The lightweight women had the opportunity to face Stanford and Princeton both Saturday and Sunday. The first race, taking place Saturday morning, was a preliminary race and the women finished 4th with a time of 7:59.58. The “experience provided invaluable feedback and exposure on a national stage,” stated coach Dan Thayer after the race. This race allowed for familiarity with not only the course, but also the environment as it was the lightweights’ first appearance since the 1980’s. In the Grand Final on Sunday, the lightweights’ posted a similar time of 8:02.10 yet closed the gap on Stanford’s B boat in comparison to Saturday. Two-seat Teresa Nguyen stated that the race on Sunday “felt better; with more connection throughout each stroke and with the boat as a whole.” Coach Dan Thayer was excited for the “marked improvement in [our] form” and said he was “pleased with [our] effort and looks forward to finding seconds of improvement.”
Heats for the men began at 8:00AM Saturday, April 6th, with the varsity eight (V8) events; the Cougars raced in the second heat which was at 8:10AM. Coming off of a strong showing at Cascade Sprints the WSU V8 was looking to qualify for the grand final event, which required a finish of 1st or 2nd, but fell short and took 4th with a time of 6:13.35. The 4th place finish was partially attributed to a slow start by the crew, but they were able to fight back into the lead group, before ultimately being outsprinted by University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB), University of California Irvine (UCI), and University of Oklahoma City (OKC), who went on to finish 1st,2nd, 3rd in the event respectively. UCSB went on to win the grand final event on Sunday, April 7. Although the 4th place finish didn’t qualify the Cougars for the grand finals, it did qualify them for the petite finals on Sunday. In the petite finals the Cougars burst off the line to an early lead, which they maintained for the first 1,000 meters before OKC and UCSD were able to overtake them. The Cougs continued to fight back, but OKC and UCSD continued to walk away, leaving the Cougs to finish in a solid 3rd place in the petite finals and 9th in the regatta overall.
The second varsity (2V8) was seeded to race in a very competitive heat with both the 2nd and 3rd varsity boats from University of California Berkley (CAL), UCSD, and UCSB. They race began with a solid start for the Cougs, but after the first couple hundred meters they fell behind the leaders and were locked on to chasing down UCSB. Although they fought back, especially in the last 500 meters of the race, they were unable to close the gap between themselves and the race leaders finishing in 5th place with a time of 6:47.47, seven seconds behind the 4th place crew UCSB. Not placing high enough in the heats to make grand or petite finals the Cougs had to turn around and race a few hours later in the 3rd finals versus Bates College and the University of Southern California. With rough water the Cougs got off to a slow start and ended up several seats down to Bates, but they fought their way back up and ended up passing Bates around the 1,000 meter mark and continued to increase their lead solidifying their 1st place position throughout the remainder of the race finishing with a time of 6:35.91.
The novice heat started off with the Cougs falling behind the leaders, but they were able to hold onto 4th place, narrowly edging out UCI to continue on to the petite finals. In petites the Cougs were given another chance to show themselves as the top club novice crew at San Diego Crew Classic, but fell short of their goal with a 4th place finish in petites, behind club rival San Diego State University by 2 seconds who took 3rd.
Head Coach Arthur Ericsson had this to say about this weekend’s racing, “Each of the men’s crew showed the passion to critique the details from their races in the heats and turn that into a much more competitive race effort within their finals. We’ve only been racing for one week so far, yet there is a healthy dose of confidence and excitement.”
Cougar Crew Headed to San Diego
By: William Miedema and Breanna Trimble
4/4/13
Saturday, April 6, and Sunday, April 7, Washington State Men’s and Lightweight Women’s Crews will be racing at the 40th annual San Diego Crew Classic on Mission Bay, San Diego, California. This year over 4,400 athletes and 125 universities, clubs, and high schools will be competing in the regatta. More than 25,000 spectators are expected to attend, but for those that cannot be lucky enough to attend there will also be online live coverage of all races. Races will be the spring standard of 2,000 meters.
WSU 2V8 finished 2nd at Cascade Sprints last weekend, just behind their 1V teammates.
The Men’s Crew will be sending three eight’s to San Diego this year, the varsity eight, second varsity eight, and the top novice eight. All three crews having come off strong showings at Cascade Sprints last weekend are ready to be tested against some of the top crews in the country. Each of the WSU Men’s boats will be either directly or competing against over 20 other teams, which will make for a very competive weekend. “The second varsity had two solid races last weekend. We are excited to bring that same intensity into our races in San Diego,” says Junior Kenji Thompson.
For the first time since the 1980s, the Lightweight Women will be competing at the San Diego Crew Classic. Scheduled to race in the Women’s Collegiate Lightweight 8+ event, the women will go head to head against two of the top varsity programs in the nation; Princeton and Stanford A and B (2010, 2011, 2012 IRA Champions). Lightweight Women’s coach, Dan Thayer’s thoughts on the weekend are “In the last thirteen years, the San Diego Crew Classic lightweight women's race has been won by Wisconsin, Stanford, or Princeton. In aiming for excellence, we own the idea that one cannot attain excellence without pursuing it wholeheartedly. I am truly grateful and excited for the opportunity for these exceptionally motivated athletes to race on a national stage”.
Race Schedule:
Lightweight Women’s Varsity 8
Saturday, Prelim, 7:50 AM
Men’s Varsity 8
Saturday, Heat “A”, 8:10 AM
Men’s Second Varsity 8
Saturday, Heat “A”, 11:20 AM
Men’s Novice 8
Saturday, Heat “C”, 10:40 AM
Lineups:
Men’s Varsity 8
1. David Herrick
2. Paul Lund
3. William Miedema
4. Orion McCabe-Gould
5. Max Vaughn
6. Alex Weatbrook
7. Chris Kimball
8. Eric Demaris
C. Danielle Mertens
Men’s Second Varsity 8
1. Joe Lillis
2. Curtis Treiber
3. Tyler Larson
4. John Gehring
5. Kevin Harris
6. Lee Peha
7. Kenji Thompson
8. Nathan Mauren
C. Kammi Moniz
Men’s Novice 8
1. John Dorscher
2. David Kessler
3. Zach Jensen
4. Jake Brisson
5. Alex Dugan
6. Matthew Brady
7. Josh Benson
8. Michael Sheremet
C. Alex Felton
Lightweight Women’s Varsity 8
1. Allison Thomas
2. Teresa Nguyen
3. Cassandra Morgan
4. Ashley Vu
5. Simone Parker
6. Sarah Doumit
7. Breanna Trimble
8. Shayla Boyle
C. Sidney Cross
We are pleased to announce the 2013 Cougar Crew Chef's Challenge.
Men’s Crew Dominates at Cascade Sprints
By William Miedema
3/31/13
On Saturday Washington State University (WSU) Men’s Crew had a very strong showing at their first 2,000 meter race of the season at Cascade Sprints on American Lake, Tacoma, Washington. Weather conditions included a light cross tail wind (5-10 mph) and light chop, but overall they had little effect on the solid WSU lineups.
Heats for the men were scheduled to start at 9:20 AM with the priority event, the M1V8, but all heats were delayed by a dense layer of fog. After a one hour delay heats started on with the M1V8 at 10:20 AM. The WSU 1V8 went on to dominate the field with a time of 6:06.1, more than 18 seconds faster than the second place crew, Western Washington University (WWU). WSU’s second varsity took another dominating win in their heat, posting a time of 6:19.7, almost 7 seconds faster than the second place crew, University of Oregon (UO). The WSU V4 heat started at 11:20 AM and concluded with the V4 taking 5th place with a time of 7:48.4, 33 seconds behind Seattle Pacific University (SPU) who finished 4th, putting them in the petite finals later that day.
Varsity 8+ following their Grand Final victory
At 11:30 AM both the “A” and “B” novice boats lined up at the starting line. The novice “A” boat went on to win their heat with a time of 6:27.3, while the “B” boat brought up the rear finishing in 7:25.3. Due to their first place finishes both WSU’s V8 and second varsity eight went on to race in the grand final event where they took first and second place respectively. The 1V8 finished in 6:04.3, while the second varsity held on to their 13 second margin behind the 1V8 and crossed the line in 6:17, edging out UO by 1.3 seconds. The novice “A” boats strong showing in the novice bracket qualified them for the MV8 petite finals, and they went on to win petites with a time of 6:25.1, over 19 seconds faster than the second place WWU second varsity boat. After a 5th place finish in heats the V4 regrouped and went on to dominate petites in 7:26.1, beating their closest rivals, Seattle Universities (SU) second varsity four by over 15 seconds.
After the races concluded, Head Coach Arthur Ericsson commented “Having the varsity 8’s finish 1st and 2nd made for an exciting day. The margins between them showed depth and is promising for races to come.”
The Lightweight Women’s Varsity 8 came out to their first spring race ready to take the course putting up a personal and program best time of 7:37.5 in their heat, and then the women powered a 7:40.5 in the Petite Grand Final through a light chop of a course.
Bre Trimble, a third year oarswoman said, “The first race felt solid. Coming off the start, we were right with the varsity/ club heavyweight boats. After our start we settled into a solid 33spm with good run, power and rhythm. We managed to stay within the pack for the first 1000m, until the top 3 boats began to pull away, however our boat speed was enough to start the season with a 7:37.5, which gives us something to work with this next week in practice and find a few more seconds to drop before heading down to San Diego to face Stanford and Princeton. I’m happy with how we raced, especially having 7 novice in the boat and it being our first 2k of the season. We’ve got a powerful crew, and I’m excited to see how we do next week against some of the nation’s best.”
The varsity 8 is looking forward to racing in San Diego next weekend. The Women’s Novice Lightweight 8 put up a time of 8:47.3 in their respective race on their first collegiate 2,000m race as a true Novice boat despite a malfunction with the Cox Box. Freshman Allison Thomas quoted that the race “was a really good experience, and it gave us a good idea of where we stand and what we need to improve on for the next race”.
Cougar Crew Opens Season in Tacoma
Varsity 8+ trains on the Snake River in preparation for this Saturday.
Saturday, March 30, Washington State University Men’s and Lightweight Women’s Crews will be competing at Cascade Sprints on American Lake in Tacoma, Washington. This will be the Cougar Crew’s first race of the spring season and for many of the novice the first 2,000 meter race of their rowing careers.
Last year the men’s novice 8+ and men’s varsity 4+ both won their respective races, while the men’s novice 4+ and men’s second varsity 8+ (who were racing in the varsity 8+ race) both took third. This year will mark the first time in several years that the men’s team will be sending a true varsity 8+ to compete.
“I'm excited to go out and show other schools what our novice team is made of,” says freshman Jeff Arnevick. “Everyone on the novice team wants to go out strong this weekend and set the tempo for the rest of the season.”
Cougar Crew Race Schedule:
9:15 MV8
9:30 WV8
9:45 M2V8
10:45 MV4
11:15 MN8
11:30 WN8
Lineups:
Men’s Varsity 8+
C- Danielle Mertens
8- Eric Demaris
7- Chris Kimball
6- Alex Weatbrook
5- Max Vaughn
4- Orion McCabe-Gould
3- William Miedema
2- Paul Lund
1- David Herrick
Men’s Second Varsity 8+
C- Kammi Moniz
8- Nathan Mauren
7- Kenji Thompson
6- Curtis Treiber
5- Kevin Harris
4- Lee Peha
3- Tyler Larson
2- John Gehring
1- Joe Lillis
Men’s Varsity 4+
C- Alyssa Kodama
4- Nick Anselmo
3- John Dingman
2- Zach Olson
1- Jaswinder Gill
Men’s Novice 8+
C- Alex Felton/ Ashley Vormund
8- Michael Sheremet
7- Josh Benson
6- Matt Brady
5- Alex Dugan
4- Jake Brisson/ Griffin Berger
3- Zach Jensen
2- John Dorscher
1- David Kessler
Men’s Second Novice 8+
C- Hayden Wise
8- Jeff Arnevick
7- Griffin Berger/ Jake Brisson
6- Adam Ziegler
5- Beau Baker
4- Ryan Mather-Haaland
3- Trevor Paul
2- Alex Plonczak
1- Austin Ebert
Lightweight Women’s Varsity 8+
C- Sidney Cross
8- Shayla Boyle
7- Breanna Trimble
6- Sarah Doumit
5- Simone Parker
4- Ashley Vu
3- Cassandra Morgan
2- Danielle Volk
1- Allison Thomas
Lightweight Women’s Novice 8+
C- Robin Weigel
8- Ashley Vu
7- Cassandra Morgan
6- Sarah Doumit
5- Simone Parker
4- Markie Montgomery
3- Samantha Wilson
2- Teresa Nguyen
1- Allison Thomas
Update: New Hudson demo 8+ Fundraising campaign
Cougar Crew days 2013 was a success! The Alumni and friends of Cougar Crew come through and match the Parent Boosters challenge. Cougar Crew will be driving their new Hudson 8+ home from San Diego in three weeks!
Thank you to all who helped make this "whale of a dream" come true!
Picture above: The 2012 V8+ rowing at ACRA National Championships; this Hudson 8+ is similar to the one that is joining the Cougar Crew fleet.
Thank you for your continued support!!
Off The Water
Head of the Lake
Cougar Crew Finish out Fall Racing Season at Head of the Lake Regatta
Closing out the fall racing season Cougar Crew traveled to Seattle on Sunday to compete in the Head of the Lake Regatta. The Head of the Lake, a head style race held annually since 1981, starts on Lake Union and finishes on Lake Washington in front of the University of Washington Boathouse. It is the largest fall race on the West Coast.
Cougar Crew, coming off a great showing at the DARE Duel against Western, sent a Varsity 8 and Varsity Lightweight Women's 8 to the event. The Varsity 8, racing in the first race of the day against University of Washington, Gonzaga University, Oregon State University and others, quickly found themselves in the middle of the pack, neither overtaking or being overtaken. Pushing themselves only against the clock they finished the course in 16:58, not including a 10 second penalty for missing a buoy that pushed their time to 17:08. Their time put them in 7th place out of 12 overall, just behind Oregon State University and University of Victoria. In the same event was an 8 made up of Cougar Crew alumni. They finished the course with a time of 19:14 in 12th place.
The Varsity Lightweight Women, competing in the Third Varsity Women's 8 event finished with a time of 22:24 in 6th place out of 7 ahead of Portland State University.
For full results go to headofthelake.org
Pre-Race
On Sunday, November 4th Cougar Crew's varsity 8, varsity lightweight women's 8 and an alumni 8 will be heading to the Head of the Lake Regatta, hosted by the University of Washington and Lake Washington Rowing Club, in Seattle. The Head of the Lake is the largest fall race on the West Coast and has been held annually since 1981. The race starts on Lake Union, heads through the Montlake Cut, out onto Lake Washington and finishes near the UW boathouse. The course is three miles long and involves a long turn going under University Bridge as well as a very sharp turn on Union Bay.
Cougar Crew's varsity 8 will be racing in the first event of the day at 8:00am. In the event will also be the Cougar Crew alumni 8. "We are ready to measure ourselves against the formidable competition that will be competing," remarks head coach Arthur Ericsson "Our crew has had more time to develop as a lineup than ever before, and this will be our chance to show that last weekend was not just a fluke." Last year the men's varsity 8 finished 5th out of 11 entries. The Lightweight Women's varsity 8 will be entered in the women's 3rd varsity event at 8:14am.
5TH ANNUAL DARE Duel
Washington State vs. Western Washington 5k headrace
November 3, 2012. Wawawai Landing, Snake River
Cox meeting 7:45am
9:00am
1V8
2V8
1N8
10:30am
V4
2N8
3N8
Once again the Snake River will bear witness to the sounds of racing as Cougar Crew takes on the Western Washington Men's rowing team on Saturday November 3. The race, known as the DARE Duel, will be a typical 5000 meter head race style match where crews are sent off with 15 seconds between them. The racing starts at 9:00am promptly with the marquee event, the Varsity 8s, racing first. Head coach Arthur Ericsson says of the event, "This weekend represents the culmination of all of our summer and fall training. With four and a half months before our next spring race, we need our absolute fastest times from every lineup." Both the Varsity and Novice crews will be fielding boats to face Western. The DARE Duel will mark the end of the fall racing season for all but the varsity 8 lineup, which travels to Seattle after the race to also compete in the Head of the Lake.
The Varsity will be racing a first varsity 8, a second varisty 8, a varsity 4 A and a varsity 4 B. The 8s will race at 9:00am and the 4s will race at 10:30.
From the Novices three 8s will be sent. The first novice 8 will start at 9:00am and the second and third novice 8s will start at 10:30am.
History of the DARE Duel: An annual duel between WSU and WWU at the end of each fall season, with each school hosting it every other year. It is named after a trophy that took place between the schools decades ago. The record is currently 2-2 since it's revival.
Washington State's Ken Abbey Shellhouse is located at Wawawai Landing.
Viewing can take place all along the 5000 meter stretch of Wawawai River Road.
Reversal of Fortune for WSU's V8 at Head of the Snake
October 28 2012
On a cold and windy Saturday morning on the Snake River Cougar Crew and Gonzaga dueled for the second weekend in a row at the Head of the Snake regatta. The first wave of the day started at 9:10 AM and raced over a 5000 meter course. The events in this wave were the first and second varsity 8s, the first and second novice 8s and the womens lightweight 8 racing exhibition. The second wave of boats started at 10:45 AM. Due to inclement weather conditions near the starting line, the course was shortened to just 3000 meters. The events in this wave included the third varsity 8, the varsity 4s, the third novice 8, the novice 4s, and the womens lightweight varsity 8.
In the varsity 8 race WSU not only overcame the 14 second margin they lost by at Head of the Spokane, but opened up the margins between them and Gonzaga to 15 seconds. WSU's varsity 8 finished the race in 15:53 while Gonzaga crossed the line in 16:08. Head Coach Arthur Ericsson said of the showing, "It means a lot to s
