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May 31,
2008 GOLD RIVER, CA -- The 12th-ranked Washington College women's rowing team's varsity eight finished 11th of 16 boats overall at the NCAA Division III Championship contested yesterday and today on Lake Natoma in Gold River, CA. The regatta marked the first-ever appearance in the NCAA Division III Championship for Washington College. The Shorewomen finished fourth of five boats in their heat on Friday in 7:13.57. Williams II won the heat in 6:49.54 to advance directly to the grand final, while Puget Sound I was second in 6:50.95, and Bates I third in 7:06.16. Puget Sound and Bates moved on to the grand qualifier. William Smith II was fifth in 7:33.77 to join the Shorewomen in Friday afternoon's petite qualifier. The order of the five boats in the heat was the same after 500 meter, 1000 meters, and 1500 meters as it was at the 2000-meter finish. Washington was third in the petite qualifier in 7:23.17 as the top three boats from the race moved on to Saturday's petite final. Trinity (CT) II won the petite qualifier in 7:14.89. Ithaca II was second in 7:22.58. The Shorewomen and Ithaca II were fighting for second place throughout the race. Ithaca II was .44 seconds ahead of Washington after 500 meters and .22 seconds ahead after 1000 meters. The Shorewomen had a great third quarter of the race, opening up a 2.14 second lead over Ithaca II at the 1500 meter mark, but Ithaca II finished strong to take second place by .59 seconds. Bates II (7:29.14), Puget Sound II (7:30.26), St. Lawrence II (7:38.76), and William Smith II (7:39.11) claimed the final four spots in the race in that order and moved on to the third-level final. Saturday's petite final determined overall boat places seventh through 12th. The Shorewomen were fifth in the race in 7:23.78 to take 11th place overall in the boat standings. As in the previous day's petite qualifier, the Shorewomen again found themselves neck-and-neck with Ithaca II, but this time Washington came out on top. The Shorewomen maintained a slight lead over Ithaca II after 1000 meters before posting a 1:51.45 split in the third 500 meters to Ithaca II's 1:53.85 to open up a 2.8 second lead. The Shorewomen increased their lead in the final 500 meters to finish over three and one-half seconds ahead of Ithaca II, which wound up sixth in the race in 7:27.33. Bates I won the petite final in 7:07.47, St. Lawrence I was second in 7:12.56, Trinity II was third in 7:13.16, and William Smith I was fourth in 7:16.06. Sophomore Krista Jensen (Mays Landing, NJ/Oakcrest) served as coxswain for the Shorewomen. Sophomore Caroline Perry (Baltimore, MD/Notre Dame Prep) sat stroke, sophomore Ericka Malow (Brunswick, OH/Brunswick) was in the seven seat, junior Jenna Lapointe (Newark, DE/Newark) was in the six seat, sophomore Amy Smith (Phoenixville, PA/Phoenixville) sat in the five seat, junior Carol Funck (Etters, PA/Red Land) was in the four seat, freshman Sarah Holland (Towson, MD/Notre Dame Prep) sat in the three seat, senior Courtney Jensen (Mays Landing, NJ/Oakcrest) was in the two seat, and sophomore Emily Hofler (Baltimore, MD/Mercy) was the bow. Senior Laura Ratz (Annapolis, MD/Annapolis) and freshman coxswain Susanne Vaughn (Bel Air, MD/John Carroll) served as the Shorewomen's alternates. Trinity (CT) I won the grand final to take the top spot in the boat standings, but Williams won the NCAA Division III Championship with a total of 25 total points as Williams I took second in the grand final and Williams II placed third. Only schools competing for the team championship with two boats at the event were awarded points. As the two at-large eights, the Shorewomen and Coast Guard were not awarded points. The Shorewomen's varsity eight finishes the season with a 34-16 head-to-head record, including a 27-11 mark against NCAA Division III schools. Final Boat Standings (Points Awarded) Final Team Point Standings |
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