Hurricane Rowers Head to 2004 Lexus Central/South Sprints
May 14, 2004
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The University of Miami rowing team will take to the waters of Melton Hill Lake in Oak Ridge, Tenn. this weekend for the 2004 Lexus Central/South Sprints held Saturday, May 15 and Sunday, May 16.
Vying for a bid to this year’s NCAA Championships in Sacramento, Calif., the eighth-annual sprints will feature 23 schools from the Central and South regions, eight of which are ranked in the USRowing/Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) Varsity Eight poll. Saturday’s opening heats are slated for 9 a.m. followed by semifinals at 2 p.m. Racing will conclude Sunday with finals beginning at 9 a.m.
Head Coach Debra Morgan sends three UM crews to this year’s sprints with the Varsity Eight, Junior Varsity Eight and Novice Eight contending for Miami.
The Hurricanes’ Varsity Eight Crew, currently receiving votes in the USRowing/CRCA Poll, will consist of Laura Comeau (cox), Karen Wiley, Jenny Krawec, Jacqui Julien, Sarah Conlon, Rachel Clausing, Caroline Stuart, Ananda Chou and Jordanna Heywood and is scheduled to race their opening heat Saturday at 11:20 a.m.
Miami’s Junior Varsity Eight boat of Jessica Martin (cox), Rachel Sander, Bridget Gallagher, Anna Cohen, Julie Crane, Ashley Marincsin, Jaquelene Heywood, Aoife Forde and Deirdre Curran will hit the water at 10:20 a.m. The Hurricanes’ JV8 crew has taken first in all but one race entered this season.
Meghan Leydecker (cox), Valerie Webb, Ashley Via, Natasha Lejer, Erin Morris, Laura Coltman, Noelle Van Ee, Molly Wilson and Marenda Chamberlin will man UM’s Novice Eight crew racing at 9:10 a.m.
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“We’ve had a tremendous year and I think this weekend will give us an opportunity to put a good finish on all that we have accomplished.” Head Coach Debra Morgan |
“We’re going to be racing a lot of crews, such as Wisconsin, Iowa and Kansas, that we have not seen this season,” Morgan said. “From that standpoint, this regatta is a bit of an unknown quantity for us. Our first goal is to place higher in each event than we did last year. After that, we’ll just knock off as many crews as possible.
“We’ve had a tremendous year and I think this weekend will give us an opportunity to put a good finish on all that we have accomplished,” Morgan added.
This year will mark the Hurricanes’ sixth visit to the Central/South sprints since it’s inception in 1997. Miami placed 12th overall in 2003, three spots below their school-best finish of ninth in 1997.
The weekend’s races also mark the final scheduled regatta for UM seniors Chou, Cohen, Gallagher, Heywood, Julien, Krawec, Sander, Stuart and Yennisha Pino.
