April 2, 2006
Varsity Four Excels at Occoquan Sprints
WC's Novice Eight Reaches Grand Finals

LORTON, VA -- The Washington College men's rowing team's varsity four finished first in its five-boat final and recorded the fastest time of any of the 16 varsity fours at the regatta today at the Occoquan Sprints in Lorton, VA.

The Shoremen's varsity four finished in 7:35.5 to win its final. Eleven other boats raced in two other finals. Senior Tom Murray (Gilbertsville, PA/Boyertown) served as the coxswain for the Shoremen's varsity four. Sophomore Hugh McAdam (Hollis, NH/Worcester Academy) sat stroke, senior Jason Brown (Baltimore, MD/Randallstown) was in the three seat, junior Andrew Bright (Gambrills, MD/DeMatha) sat in the two seat, and senior Mike Philipp (Newark, DE/Newark) was the bow.

"The four raced exceptionally hard today, after a really heartbreaking loss the day before," commented men's rowing coach Jay Schamber. "To lose by eight-tenths of a second like they did yesterday, and then come back today and do well I think they had a little bit of a chip on thier shoulder. Their race was without a doubt the most complete piece they've rowed so far this year. To have the race be three boats across at 1000, and then really move away from the field in the third 500 was an outstanding testament to he work they've put in over the winter months. Fitness and aggression won them this race today. These are the two things that we've worked really hard to improve as the fall and winter moved along with this group."

Washington's novice eight was second in its heat in 7:18.4 to advance to the grand finals, where the Shoremen tied for third with Loyola in 7:19.7. Maryland won the novice eight. Freshman Victoria Pace (Severna Park, MD/Archbishop Spalding) was the coxswain of the Shoremen's boat in the novice eight. Freshman Derek Trott (Huntingtown, MD/Northern) sat stroke, freshman Steve Reuter (Howard County, MD/Long Reach) was in the seven seat, freshman Will Bruce (Abington, PA/Abington) was in the six seat, freshman Zak Morey (Mohnton, PA/Governor Mifflin) sat in the five seat, freshman Clint McKee (Woodbine, MD/St. John's at Prospect Hall) was in the four seat, freshman Cole Eshbach (Columbia, PA/Columbia) sat in the three seat, sophomore Eric Abbott (Mt. Airy, MD/Queen Anne's County) was in the two seat, and freshman Matt Icenroad (Sykesville, MD/Century) was the bow.

The novice boat really has started to come into its own in the past week or so," noted Schamber. "They followed up yesterday's win over Hopkins with a second place finish in their heat. The finish was skewed slightly, though, as they were interfered with, and had to stop rowing. After picking it up, they were able to still qualify for the grand final this afternoon."

"The guys for the most part were content with their race in the morning. In the afternoon final the novice eight had a solid start, and found themselves leading at about 700 or so. Unfortunately for them, I think that the combination of the heat, as well as having doubled up races on back-to-back days took its toll. While continuing to fight their way down the course, they simply didn't have the pop it took to run with a fast University of Maryland team. They finished third overall, but are hungry to get back on the water and compete again. This finish for a group or athletes that doesn't include any recruited athletes really shows the level of dedication and commitment each of these guys has given to the team and their teammates."

Sophomore Chris Broadwell (Virginia Beach, VA/Cape Henry Collegiate School) and junior Ryan Trone (New Oxford, PA/New Oxford) finished fifth in the men's pair in 9:43.14.

"The pair had a pretty rough day," commented Schamber. "I'm proud of how these guys have worked at trying to make a go of the pair, but it seems that we're going to need to make some drastic rigging adjustments to get the boat going in a straight line. Both Chris and Ryan are outstanding young men who've trained hard all winter,and raced as hard as they could today. It's difficult for them as they've only rowed the pair a couple times, and this was the first time on a buoyed course. I think that with another week under their belts they'll do considerably better next weekend at the Knecht Cup."

The Shoremen return to action next Saturday and Sunday at the Knecht Cup in Camden, NJ.