Weekly Release #8

5/13/2003 12:00:00 AM | Rowing

Upcoming Schedule
Sat-Sun., May 17-18 -- at Lexus Central/South Region Sprints (Oak Ridge, Tenn.)
Fri-Sun., May 30-June 1 -- at NCAA Championships (Indianapolis, Ind.)

Michigan This Week
The No. 7-ranked University of Michigan rowing team continues its postseason run this Saturday and Sunday (May 17-18) at the Lexus Central/South Region Sprints in Oak Ridge, Tenn. After winning the 2003 Big Ten Conference championship two weeks ago, the Wolverines will be seeking their sixth consecutive Central Region title on Melton Hill Lake. Although 21 crews will be heading to the regatta, U-M will technically be competing against Cincinnati, Eastern Michigan, Indiana, No. 15 Iowa, Kansas, Kansas State, No. 11 Michigan State, Minnesota, Notre Dame, No. 10 Ohio State and Tulsa. The South Region contains the other nine schools. All of the 21 teams will compete against one another throughout the weekend; however, final standings will be determined based on the points accumulated as compared to regional opponents.

Saturday Morning Heats
I Novice Eight	9:00 a.m.	Heat 1
	9:15 a.m.	Heat 2
	9:30 a.m.	Heat 3
II Varsity Four	9:45 a.m.	Heat 1
	10:00 a.m.	Heat 2
I Varsity Four	10:15 a.m.	Heat 1
	10:30 a.m.	Heat 2
	10:45 a.m.	Heat 3
II Varsity Eight	11:00 a.m.	Heat 1
	11:15 a.m.	Heat 2
I Varsity Eight	11:30 a.m.	Heat 1
	11:45 a.m.	Heat 2
	noon	Heat 3
	12:15 p.m.	Heat 4

Michigan's heats are in bold

Saturday Afternoon Semifinals and Repechages
I Novice Eight	Semifinal 1
	Semifinal 2
II Varsity Four	Repechage 1
I Varsity Four	Semifinal 1
	Semifinal 2
II Varsity Eight	Repechage 1
	Repechage 2
I Varsity Eight	Semifinal C/D 1
	Semifinal C/D 2
	Semifinal A/B 1
	Semifinal A/B 2

Sunday Finals
9:00 a.m.	I Varsity Eight	D Level Final
9:15 a.m.	I Novice Eight	C Level Final
9:30 a.m.	I Varsity Four	C Level Final
9:45 a.m.	II Varsity Eight	C Level Final
10:00 a.m.	I Varsity Eight	C Level Final
10:15 a.m.	II Novice Eight	Grand Final
10:30 a.m.	I Novice Eight	Petite Final
10:45 a.m.	I Novice Eight	Grand Final
11:00 a.m.	II Varsity Four	Petite Final
11:15 a.m.	II Varsity Four	Grand Final
11:30 a.m.	I Varsity Four	Petite Final
11:45 a.m.	I Varsity Four	Grand Final
Noon	II Varsity Eight	Petite Final
12:15 p.m.	II Varsity Eight	Grand Final
12:30 p.m.	I Varsity Eight	Petite Final
12:45 p.m.	I Varsity Eight	Grand Final

Live Results
The University of Tennessee will serve as the host school for the Lexus Central/South Region Sprints. More information and results about the event can be found at utladyvols.com. Final results and award winners will be posted following the regatta.

Forecast
Saturday's forecast in Oak Ridge, Tenn., calls for a high of 77 degrees with a 40 percent chance of thunderstorms. On Sunday, the temperature should be 67 degrees with a 40 percent chance of rain.

Championship Format
The number of entries for each of the six events ranges from five (second novice eight) to 21 (first varsity eight). Besides the second novice eight event, all of the competitions have preliminary heats early on Saturday. Depending on the event, the teams with the top finishes in each heat may advance directly to the Grand Finals on Sunday. Otherwise, crews may have to re-qualify in repechage heats on Saturday afternoon. Each boat earns points for its team based on its final finish on Sunday (see chart below).

Place-Points

Race	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
IV8	36	33	30	27	24	21	18	15
IIV8	24	22	20	18	16	14	12	10
IV4	12	11	10	9	8	7	6	5
IIV4	6	5	4	3	2	1
IN8	6	5	4	3	2	1
IIN8	5	4	3	2	1

Last Year at the Central Region Championships
Michigan grabbed its fifth straight Central Region crown in 2002 on May 19 in Oak Ridge, Tenn. The Wolverines won all five of their respective heats on May 18 to advance to the Grand Finals the next day. U-M's first novice eight and second varsity four boats earned second place in their Grand Finals while the first varsity four and second varsity eight produced first-place finishes. Although the first varsity eight dropped to second place in its final, the strength of the entire team gave the Maize and Blue the Central Region title over rival Ohio State.

Hail to the Victors!
Michigan brought home its third Big Ten Conference championship in four years on May 3 in Columbus, Ohio. The 2003 title was as close as it could get with Michigan and Michigan State tying with 123 team points at the end of the day. The Wolverines were awarded first place, however, because their first varsity eight boat won the flagship event. After finishing no better than fifth place in the two novice races and the second varsity four competition, the Maize and Blue earned some much needed points when the first varsity four hit the finish line just 1.8 seconds ahead of second-place Iowa. Then, a first-place finish by the Spartans and a third-place finish by U-M in the second varsity eight final created a situation where Michigan had to finish at least two places better that MSU in the first varsity eight final. Michigan's first eight pulled away from the competition and won the Grand Final by just over a boat length and Ohio State gave U-M help by beating MSU by 0.7 seconds to give the Wolverines the necessary points to tie the Spartans and gain the tiebreaker.

I Can't Believe They're Not Butter... Because They're On a Roll
Michigan's first varsity eight and first varsity four have won seven consecutive races dating back to April 6 when they defeated Michigan State and Eastern Michigan in three-way racing. The two boats upended Virginia and Duke on April 12 and then swept Indiana and Ohio State on April 19. The Wolverines won their respective heats at the Big Ten Championships on May 3 before pulling in two first-place honors in the Grand Finals en route to U-M's conference title.

All-Big Ten
For their efforts at the Big Ten Championships, five Michigan rowers were named to the All-Big Ten teams. Erin Kopicki (Dearborn, Mich./Divine Child HS), Kate Maxim (St. Helena, S.C./Langley HS) and Helen Dalis (Augusta, Ga./Davidson Fine Arts) were selected as All-Big Ten first team members. Heather Mandoli (Kelowna, B.C./KLO Secondary School) and Katie Reynolds (Saint John, New Brunswick/Saint John SS) were a part of the All-Big Ten second team.

Kopicki Named Big Ten Rower of the Year
Kopicki, a senior who sits in the stroke seat of the first varsity eight boat, was elected as the Big Ten Conference Rower of the Year for 2003 on May 7. The accolade was determined by the Big Ten coaches. A Michigan athlete has been selected as the Big Ten Conference Rower of the Year three out of the four years that the league has sponsored rowing. In 2000 and 2001, Kate Johnson was given the laurel.

Michigan Earns Three Awards
Michigan's first varsity eight compiled three consecutive Big Ten Boat of the Week awards, a school record, to finish off its 2003 regular season. On April 6, the Wolverines defeated No. 10 Michigan State 6:32.37 to 6:36.17 to earn their first weekly award of the year. The following week on April 12, the first eight swept then No. 10 Virginia (6:21.7 to 6:26.8) and Duke (6:21.2 to 6:33.8) as it earned co-Boat of the Week with Ohio State's first varsity eight. Lastly, the varsity eight upended Indiana (6:44.92 to 6:59.03) and No. 11 Ohio State (6:26.59 to 6:35.91) on April 19 to share the weekly laurels with Michigan State's first varsity eight.

What's the Deal with the Automatic Bid
The Central Region Championships winner does not receive the Central Region's automatic bid for the NCAA Championships. Bids for the national championships -- automatic and at-large -- are awarded based on several criteria. However, because of the level of competition and the late-season date of the regatta, results from the Central Region Championships are heavily considered in the selection process. The NCAA Championships run from May 30-June 1 at Eagle Creek Reservoir in Indianapolis, Ind.

Head of the Class
Sixteen Michigan rowers earned a Michigan Athletics Academic Achievement Award on April 14. The honor was given to student-athletes who had either a 3.0 cumulative GPA or two consecutive semesters with at least a 3.0 GPA. The honored athletes included: Julia Boyles (Rochester Hills, Mich./Rochester Adams HS), Emke Bury (Gross Ile, Mich./Gross Ile HS), Stesha Carl (Long Beach, Calif./Wilson HS), Christina Ceo (Saline, Mich./Saline HS), Amy Coughlin (Waterford, Mich./Waterford Mott HS), Helen Dalis (Augusta, Ga./Davidson Fine Arts), Laura Drongowski (Dublin, Ohio/Coffman HS), Emily Goodwin (Edgewater, Md./Forest Hills Central HS, Mich.), Leah Ketcheson (Belleville, Ont./Bayside SS), Erin Kopicki, Kate Maxim (St. Helena, S.C./Langley HS), Cristin McCarty (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan/Bishop James Mahoney SS), Christin Plunkett (Pittsford, Mich./Pittsford HS), Stephanie Shapiro (Pittsburgh, Pa./Taylor Allderdice HS), Brett Sickler (Los Gatos, Calif./Los Gatos HS) and Hillary Van Duyne (Flint, Mich./Carman-Ainsworth HS).

Probable Lineups

First Varsity Eight coxswain: Helen Dalis 8-seat: Erin Kopicki 7-seat: Crystal Culp 6-seat: Stesha Carl 5-seat: Heather Mandoli 4-seat: Leah Ketcheson 3-seat: Brett Sickler 2-seat: Kate Maxim 1-seat: Katie Reynolds Second Varsity Eight coxswain: Tara Medina 8-seat: Sarah Trowbridge 7-seat: Emily Goodwin 6-seat: Christin Plunkett 5-seat: Heather DeHainaut 4-seat: Laura Drongowski 3-seat: Elizabeth Kreger 2-seat: Emke Bury 1-seat: Christina Ceo First Varsity Four coxswain: Louisa DiLeone 4-seat: Stephanie Shapiro 3-seat: Elizabeth Godek 2-seat: Janine Hanson 1-seat: Amy Coughlin Second Varsity Four coxswain: Sarah O'Brien 4-seat: Pam Woll 3-seat: Margot Woolley 2-seat: Hillary Van Duyne 1-seat: Julia Boyles