Top Three Boats Relegated to Petite Finals at Centrals

Saturday, May 12

Oak Ridge, Tenn.

Michigan

Central/South Region Heats

Top Three Boats Relegated to Petite Finals at Centrals

5/12/2007 12:00:00 AM | Rowing

Site: Oak Ridge, Tenn. (Melton Hill Lake)
Event: #6 Michigan at Central/South Region Championships (Day 1)
Results: First Varsity Eight -- Advanced to Petite Final
    Second Varsity Eight -- Advanced to Petite Final
    First Varsity Four -- Advanced to Petite Final
    Second Varsity Four -- Advanced to Grand Final
    First Novice Eight -- Advanced to Grand Final
Next U-M Event: Sunday, May 13 -- at Central/South Region Championships (Oak Ridge, Tenn.)

OAK RIDGE, Tenn. -- The No. 6-ranked University of Michigan women's rowing team had an unsatisfactory afternoon on Saturday (May 12) at the Central/South Region Championships as each of its top three crews -- first varsity eight, second varsity eight, first varsity four -- was unable to qualify for Sunday's (May 13) grand finals.

The first eight was fifth in its semifinal. The second eight and first four took fourth in their respective semifinals. Top three finishes were needed to reach grand finals. U-M's novice eight was second in its semifinal and the second varsity four was third in its semifinal as both crews qualified for their grand finals.

U-M's first varsity eight race was led by Tennessee and Central Florida in the opening stages. Through 500 meters, Michigan was last behind UT, UCF, Minnesota, Louisville and Michigan State. U-M was still last at 1,000 meters, 10 seats back of UCF for third place and the final position for the grand final. The Wolverines were able to pass MSU in the closing stages of the race but their finishing time of 7:00.68 left them more than length back of third-place UCF (6:55.58) and victor Minnesota (6:52.00). Tennessee was second in 6:53.31.

The second varsity eight was down early in fifth, a length behind leader Tennessee just 250 meters into the semifinal. UT and Minnesota fought for first with Louisville and Notre Dame also in front of U-M. Michigan had edged ND by 750 meters and was six seats down on third-place Louisville at the midpoint of the course. Michigan did not gain any more water on the leaders in the final half of the race, dropping it to fourth place in 7:03.43. Minnesota (6:55.60), Tennessee (6:59.29) and Louisville (7:00.68) were the boats to advance.

U-M's first varsity four semifinal was dominated by Virginia from start to finish. Michigan was in sixth place at the 500-meter mark and was more than a length and a half behind UVA at 1,000 meters. Notre Dame and Ohio State also had open water leads on the Wolverines. Michigan tracked down Central Florida and Kansas in the final 500 meters, but there was not enough time for it to overcome OSU's hold on third place. UVA won in 7:40.80, followed by ND (7:49.41) and OSU (7:51.29). U-M clocked in at 7:54.15.

The novice eight was third in the first quarter of its race behind Notre Dame and Kansas State. The same order remained at 1,000 meters, but Michigan was closing quickly on the Fighting Irish. U-M ended up surpassing ND and wound up in second, just 1.04 seconds behind the winning Kansas State crew.

The second varsity four race was controlled by Virginia, which had an open water lead on the field at 500 meters. Tennessee and Indiana were trading bow balls for second place with U-M just a bit back in fourth. Michigan fell back of IU and then eventually walked through the Hoosiers to comfortably finish in third place in 8:25.54. UVA won in 8:14.40, followed by Tennessee in 8:22.37.

In its morning heat, the first varsity eight placed second (6:41.85) behind Ohio State (6:39.80). The Wolverines were down from the start to Wisconsin, Ohio State and Iowa, , but they had a strong second half to the race, passing Iowa and Wisconsin, which took third..

The second varsity eight was also second to Ohio State in its heat, 6:53.01 to 6:50.53, respectively. U-M had closed to within three seats of OSU at 1,000 meters, however, the Buckeyes responded and won by almost three-quarters of a length.

The first varsity four heat was a one-two battle between Minnesota and Michigan down the length of the course with Minnesota winning in 7:45.60 and Michigan second in 7:49.01.

The first novice eight won its heat in a time of 7:10.20. U-M was third early on behind UW and OSU. Michigan passed OSU by the halfway point and walked through the Badgers in the final portion of the race.

The second varsity four was fourth in its heat to garner a spot in the A/B semifinal. Virginia led from start to finish. Louisville, Wisconsin and Michigan took second, third and fourth, respectively.

Sunday's (May 13) racing commences at 9 a.m. Complete results and updates are available at Tennessee's site.

RESULTS

Morning Results (Heats)

First Varsity Eight (Heat 3) 1. Ohio State 6:39.80 2. MICHIGAN 6:41.85 3. Wisconsin 6:44.25 4. Iowa 6:49.42 5. Cincinnati 7:06.16 6. Eastern Michigan 7:09.20 Second Varsity Eight (Heat 3) 1. Ohio State 6:50.50 2. MICHIGAN 6:53.01 3. Notre Dame 6:56.79 4. Iowa 7:00.52 5. Cincinnati 7:17.15 First Varsity Four (Heat 2) 1. Minnesota 7:34.1 2. MICHIGAN 7:36.2 3. Clemson 7:50.5 4. Iowa 7:53.2 5. Cincinnati 7:55.2 Novice Eight (Heat 2) 1. MICHIGAN 7:10.20 2. Wisconsin 7:14.33 3. Ohio State 7:31.53 4. Cincinnati 7:43.42 5. Murray State 8:07.43 Open Four (Heat 2) 1. Virginia 7:45.20 2. Louisville 7:53.40 3. Wisconsin 7:56.69 4. MICHIGAN 7:59.95 5. Iowa 8:09.53

Afternoon Semifinals and Repechages

First Varsity Eight (Semifinal A/B 1) 1. Minnesota 6:52.00 2. Tennessee 6:53.31 3. Central Florida 6:55.58 4. Louisville 6:56.16 5. MICHIGAN 7:00.68 6. Michigan State 7:02.53 Second Varsity Eight (Semifinal A/B 1) 1. Minnesota 6:55.60 2. Tennessee 6:59.29 3. Louisville 7:00.68 4. MICHIGAN 7:03.43 5. Notre Dame 7:06.63 6. Clemson 7:20.11 First Varsity Four (Semifinal A/B 1) 1. Virginia 7:40.80 2. Notre Dame 7:49.41 3. Ohio State 7:51.29 4. MICHIGAN 7:54.15 5. Kansas 8:02.26 6. Central Florida 8:06.11 Novice Eight (Semifinal A/B 1) 1. Kansas State 7:08.90 2. MICHIGAN 7:10.04 3. Notre Dame 7:16.94 4. Clemson 7:22.74 5. Iowa 7:28.99 6. Ohio State 7:29.28 Open Four (Semifinal A/B 2) 1. Virginia 'B' 8:14.40 2. Tennessee 8:22.37 3. MICHIGAN 8:25.54 4. Indiana 8:36.60 5. Notre Dame 8:40.29 6. Ohio State 8:44.38

Michigan Lineups

First Varsity Eight -- Julia Dalzell (coxswain), Adrienne Mecham, Lori Gordon, Julia Nelson, Cate Trumble, Karen Colwell, Kate Strzalkowski, Ashley Jones, Emily Shea.