Miami's Varsity 4 Beats UCF Saturday on Lake Pickett
March 29, 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. – The University of Miami rowing team, under the direction of first-year head coach Robbie Tenenbaum, opened its 2008 season against UCF Saturday, winning the Varsity Four race in a time of 7:32.59 on Orlando’s Lake Pickett. Molly Thornton and Karalyn Van Aken, bow Courtney Guy, stroke Julianne Parker and coxswain Ana Cristina Mantilla made up the crew that beat UCF by nearly six seconds.
“I am proud of the way our team raced today,” Tenenbaum said. “The Varsity 4 did a great job, grabbing the lead early and then continuing to pull away. The five student-athletes in this boat have really been improving all winter and spring, and I was so happy to see them beat a quality opponent.”
Conditions were great on Lake Pickett. Temperatures for the race were in the mid 70’s, while the wind was calm and the water was flat.
UCF won the Varsity Eight race in a time of 6:34.79 while UM’s team of Monika Sajincic, Beth Krawec, Sarah Medland, Louise Parry, Laura Cordner, Emily Wingrove, bow Tara Eddings, stroke Kelly Amsler and coxswain Shira Kharrazi came in at 6:44.64.
“I felt like we raced well in the Varsity 8, but the crew and I know that there are improvements that we can make as we prepare for our next competition,” Tenenbaum said. “The entire team seems eager to get back to training Monday morning.”
Miami also finished behind UCF in the 2nd Varsity Eight race (6:58.28) and the Novice Eight race (7:37.42).
The `Canes will now begin preparation for their long road trip to Michigan next weekend. The team heads to East Lansing, Mich. Saturday March 5 to race against Indiana and Notre Dame before making the short trip to Ypsilanti, Mich. the following day to face host Eastern Michigan.
“All of our boats know there is a lot of work to be done before our races next weekend,” Tenenbaum added. “We are facing two great opponents on Saturday that are both very well coached. Indiana has a strong program and Notre Dame was 12th in the country at the 2007 NCAA Women’s Rowing Championships. Our team is looking forward to the trip up north and the challenge of racing two great teams in the same day.”
