Gonzaga University
WIRA Championships
Men's Rowing Wins Three Medals At WIRA Championships
5/2/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Crew
May 2, 2010
RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif. - The Western Intercollegiate Rowing Association (WIRA) Championships came to a close on Sunday with the Gonzaga University men's rowing team claiming gold in the Novice 4+, silver in the Junior Varsity 8+ and bronze in the Novice 8+. The Bulldogs, rowing on Lake Natoma in outside of Sacramento, Calif., also placed second in the Efficiency Trophy standings and third for the Total Points Trophy.
"Overall it was a good finish to the WIRA's," commented head coach Dan Gehn after the championships. "Each boat handled the gusty and choppy water as well as they could."
The Bulldogs Novice 4+ earned the gold by a second, out rowing Sacramento State University with a time of 7:01.4. The Hornets took second at 7:02.5 followed by UC Davis in third at 7:09.4.
"The Novice 4+ did a fantastic job," said Gehn. "This is probably just their fourth of fifth time racing together this season and to win is so great for them."
The Novice 4+ boat was comprised of Jessica Sutterman, Stuart McDonald, Andrew Batinovich, Zach Gray and Enrique Alvarado.
The Junior Varsity 8+ race was an extremely close finish. The Bulldog came back from being six or seven seats down to take a bow lead over UC San Diego with about 20 strokes to go. UC San Diego, though, crossed the finish line in front of the Zags with a last few stroke push. The Tritons won the race with a time of 6:36.6, just .2 seconds faster than Gonzaga who finished the 2,000 meter course in 6:36.8.
"The Junior Varsity had a great race today," stated Gehn. "I am proud of the way they battled back and fought strong all the way to the finish."
The Zag JV8 members were Crystal Huff, Jeremy Lazzara, Frankie Russo, David Wayne, Julian Stephanski, Will Griffith, Tyler Mendiola, Mike Gore and Evan Winiger.
The Novice 8+ race was a barnburner between Orange Coast College and UC San Diego. OCC won the race by the closest of margins, pulling out the victory with a time of 6:21.3. UC San Diego had a finish of 6:21.31. The Bulldogs came in third with a solid finish of 6:27.9.
"The Novice 8+ rowed the best race they could row," said Gehn. "They did great job of holding off and beating both San Diego and Santa Barbara. With all the injuries they have had this season, they did a fantastic job today."
The Bulldogs beat San Diego by one second and Santa Barbara by three seconds.
The Novice 8+ boat had Tayler Mattheisen, Sahan Fernando, Bennett Shultz, Frankie Green, Garrett Benson, Dan Rinker, Dan Pavlik, Aaron Gonzales and Erik Strand in it.
In the marquee Varsity 8+ race, the Bulldogs fought a heavy sidewind and choppy water throughout the race course. Unfortunately, Gonzaga couldn't overcome the water and finished fourth on the day. GU had a time of 6:17.3. Washington State University claimed the victory in 6:13.0, followed by UC Davis in second at 6:14.2. Santa Clara University edged out Gonzaga for third by .4 seconds at 6:16.9.
"The Varsity didn't handle the water very well today," state Gehn. "I have to applaud how they came back from being four seats down at the 1,000-meter mark. They attacked the race as best they could but just didn't get the outcome we were looking for."
The Varsity 8+ boat was comprised of Sean Finerty, Andrew Krug, Connor Murphy, Neil Coppinger, Matt White, Benji Schwarz, Connor Wege, Kenny Mentel and Nick Willard.
With the Zags fourth place finish in the Varsity 8+ race, the automatic qualifier was not met. GU will now wait to see if it earns an at-large for the IRA National Championships.
Griffith, a member of the Junior Varsity 8+ was named to the All-WIRA second team.
Western Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championships - Day Two
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Lake Natoma (Rancho Cordova, Calif.)
Weather: Sunny, 70s. Very harsh sidewinds. Gusty and choppy water.
Novice 4+ Grand Final
1. Gonzaga, 7:01.4
2. Sacramento State, 7:02.5
3. UC Davis, 7:09.4
4. Orange Coast, 7:26.9
5. San Diego, 7:37.5
Novice 8+ Grand Final
1. Orange Coast, 6:21.3
2. UC San Diego, 6:21.31
3. Gonzaga, 6:27.9
4. San Diego, 6:28.9
5. UC Santa Barbara, 7:30.5
6. Washington State, 6:40.0
Junior Varsity 8+ Grand Final
1. UC San Diego, 6:36.6
2. Gonzaga, 6:36.8
3. Washington State, 6:41.1
4. Orange Coast, 6:42.8
5. UC Davis. 6:50.5
6. Colorado, 6:54.2
Varsity 8+ Grand Final
1. Washington State, 6:13.0
2. UC Davis, 6:14.2
3. Santa Clara, 6:16.9
4. Gonzaga, 6:17.3
5. Orange Coast, 6:18.6
6. UC San Diego, 6:19.9
