Weekly Release #5

5/9/2007 12:00:00 AM | Rowing

Upcoming Schedule
Sat-Sun., May 12-13 -- at Central/South Region Sprints (Oak Ridge, Tenn.)
Fri-Sun., May 25-27 -- at NCAA Championships (Oak Ridge, Tenn.)

Michigan This Week
The No. 6-ranked University of Michigan rowing team continues its postseason this Saturday and Sunday (May 12-13) at the Central/South Region Sprints in Oak Ridge, Tenn. Saturday's preliminary races on Melton Hill Lake will begin at 9 a.m., followed by the semifinals at 2 p.m. The finals will commence on Sunday at 9 a.m.

The Wolverines gained momentum two weeks ago as the first varsity eight won a boat title at the Big Ten Championships. As a result, U-M placed second as a team. A strong team showing at this weekend's Central/South Region Sprints would give U-M a return trip to Oak Ridge, Tenn., where the 2007 NCAA Championships will be held May 25-27.

While 23 crews will be heading to the Central/South Region Sprints, U-M will technically be competing against Cincinnati, Eastern Michigan, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kansas State, No. 13 Michigan State, No. 7 Minnesota, Murray State, No. 3 Notre Dame, No. 12 Ohio State and Wisconsin. The South Region contains the other 10 schools. All of the 23 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
Open Four	9:00 a.m.	Heat 1
	9:10 a.m.	Heat 2
	9:20 a.m.	Heat 3
Novice Eight	9:30 a.m.	Heat 1
	9:40 a.m.	Heat 2
	9:50 a.m.	Heat 3
	10:00 a.m.	Heat 4
First Varsity Four	10:10 a.m.	Heat 1
	10:20 a.m.	Heat 2
	10:30 a.m.	Heat 3
	10:40 a.m.	Heat 4
Second Varsity Eight	10:50 a.m.	Heat 1
	11:00 a.m.	Heat 2
	11:10 a.m.	Heat 3
	11:20 a.m.	Heat 4
First Varsity Eight	11:30 a.m.	Heat 1
	11:40 a.m.	Heat 2
	11:50 a.m.	Heat 3
	12:00 p.m.	Heat 4

Michigan's heats are in bold

Saturday Afternoon Semifinals and Repechages
Open Four	2:00 p.m.	Semifinal 1
	2:10 p.m.	Semifinal 2
Novice Eight	2:20 p.m.	Semifinal C/D 1
	2:30 p.m.	Semifinal C/D 2
	2:40 p.m.	Semifinal A/B 1
	2:50 p.m.	Semifinal A/B 2
First Varsity Four	3:00 p.m.	Semifinal A/B 1
	3:10 p.m.	Semifinal A/B 2
Second Varsity Eight	3:20 p.m.	Semifinal C/D 1
	3:30 p.m.	Semifinal C/D 2
	3:40 p.m.	Semifinal A/B 1
	3:50 p.m.	Semifinal A/B 2
First Varsity Eight	4:00 p.m.	Semifinal C/D 1
	4:10 p.m.	Semifinal C/D 2
	4:20 p.m.	Semifinal A/B 1
	4:30 p.m.	Semifinal A/B 2

Sunday Finals
9:00 a.m.	Novice Eight	D Level Final
9:10 a.m.	Second Varsity Eight	D Level Final
9:20 a.m.	First Varsity Eight	D Level Final
9:30 a.m.	Open Four	C Level Final
9:40 a.m.	Novice Eight	C Level Final
9:50 a.m.	Varsity Four	C Level Final
10:00 a.m.	Second Varsity Eight	C Level Final
10:10 a.m.	First Varsity Eight	C Level Final
10:20 a.m.	Open Four	Petite Final
10:30 a.m.	Open Four	Grand Final
10:40 a.m.	Novice Eight	Petite Final
10:50 a.m.	Novice Eight	Grand Final
11:00 a.m.	First Varsity Four	Petite Final
11:10 a.m.	First Varsity Four	Grand Final
11:20 a.m.	Second Varsity Eight	Petite Final
11:30 a.m.	Second Varsity Eight	Grand Final
11:40 a.m.	First Varsity Eight	Petite Final
11:50 a.m.	First Varsity Eight	Grand Final

Weather Outlook
The forecast for Oak Ridge, Tenn., is for sunny skies for most of the weekend. Temperatures are expected to reach the high 80s and humidity levels around 50%.

Championship Format
The number of entries for each of the six events ranges from 13 (open four) to 21 (first varsity eight). Each of the race classifications has preliminary heats on Saturday morning. Based on heat finishes boats advance to varying levels of semifinals that take place Saturday afternoon. From the semifinals, crews are placed into their final races on Sunday. Each boat earns points for its team based on its final finish on Sunday (see chart below).

Place-Points

Finish	IV8	IIV8	IV4	IN8	IIV4
1	207	126	57	36	12
2	198	120	54	34	11
3	189	114	51	32	10
4	180	108	48	30	9
5	171	102	45	28	8
6	162	96	42	26	7
7	153	90	39	24	6
8	144	84	36	22	5
9	135	78	33	20	4
10	126	72	30	18	3
11	117	66	27	16	2
12	108	60	24	14	1
13	99	54	21	12
14	90	48	18	10
15	81	42	15	8
16	72	36	12	6
17	63	30	9	4
18	54	24	6	2
19	45	18	3
20	36	12
21	27	6
22	18
23	9

Last Year at the Central/South Region Championships
Michigan had a strong opening day at the 2006 Central/South Region Championships as four of its five crews C including its top three boats -- qualified for the A finals. The finals did not proceed nearly as well for Michigan. The first varsity eight was in contention for first place before a sub par second half dropped it to sixth place. The first varsity four also placed sixth in the A final. The second varsity eight took fourth place in its A final. The second varsity four was second in the B final. The first novice eight earned a runner-up finish in the A final. Ohio State won the overall and Central Region championships with 366 points. Tennessee won the South Region title with 294 points, but was sixth overall. Wisconsin took second place (361), followed by Notre Dame (336) and fourth-place Michigan (317).

Two Weeks Ago at the Big Ten Championships
The Wolverines earned a second-place team finish at the 2007 Big Ten Championships on April 28 in Madison, Wis. The first varsity eight led the charge with a boat title, upsetting top-seeded Ohio State. The win by the first eight contributed more than half (63) of U-M's 117 total points. Minnesota won the Big Ten team title as well as boat titles in the second varsity eight, first varsity four, second varsity four and first novice eight events en route to setting the Big Ten Championships record with 150 points. Third place through seventh place went as follows: Ohio State (103), Michigan State (102), Wisconsin (87), Iowa (49) and Indiana (33). Michigans second varsity eight and second varsity four placed four in their respective grand finals. The first varsity four and first novice eight won their petite finals to finish fifth overall. The Wolverine second varsity eight took first in its grand final.

Topping the Podium
U-Ms first varsity eight has captured first place at the Big Ten Championships five times in eight opportunities. Michigans top boat won its event at the inaugural Big Ten Championships in 2000, repeated the feat in 2001 and then won back-to-back titles again in 2003 and 2004. The first varsity eight has finished outside the top two just once (2005-fourth) at the Big Ten Championships.

Mecham Earns Big Ten Freshman of the Year Honor
Adrienne Mecham (Lake Stevens, Wash./Lake Stevens) was selected as the Big Ten Freshman of the Year by the conferences coaches on May 3. Mecham is just the second Wolverine rookie to claim the Big Ten Freshman of the Year award C Leah Ketcheson was the first in 2002. Mecham has rowed from the stroke seat in the first varsity eight in each of the last four regattas for the Maize and Blue. The first varsity eight won a Big Ten boat title at the Big Ten Championships on April 28.

All-Big Ten
For their efforts throughout the 2007 campaign, five Wolverines were named to the All-Big Ten teams at the Big Ten Championships on April 28. Junior/sophomore Karen Colwell (Pawcatuck, Conn./Stonington), senior Emily Shea (Ashfield, Mass./Deerfield Academy) and senior coxswain Julia Dalzell (Berkeley, Calif./Miramonte) each received first team honors. Sophomore Julia Nelson (St. Catharines, Ontario/St. Francis) and freshman Adrienne Mecham were tabbed for the second team. In addition, Marin McCabe (Champaign, Ill./Centennial) was recognized as one of seven Big Ten Sportsmanship honorees.

Trial by Fire
Twenty-four of the 33 Wolverines are either freshmen or sophomores. At the Big Ten Championships the first varsity eight was composed of five sophomores, two freshmen and one senior. Besides senior Emily Shea only sophomores Ashley Jones (Oakland, Calif./Skyline) and Cate Trumble (Dalkeith, Western Australia/Presbyterian Ladies' College) had experience in U-M's top boat before this season. U-M's second varsity eight most recently featured three sophomores, three freshmen, one junior and one senior. The coxswain is sophomore Laura Dunn (Andover, Mass./Pomfret School [Conn.]). The first varsity four has the most experience with three juniors, one sophomore and freshman coxswain Margaret Deinek (Grosse Pointe, Mich./Grosse Pointe South).

Welcome Aboard
Three new assistant coaches joined the Maize and Blue late last summer. Veronika Platzer spent four previous seasons as an assistant coach at Virginia. She oversees the majority of U-M's recruiting efforts. Bernadette Teeley is a U-M alumna who helped the Wolverines capture the 2001 Big Ten championship and finish second at the NCAA Championships. Teeley earned all-Big Ten first team, all-Central Region first team and was a CRCA National Scholar Athlete. Molly Gutilla was an assistant coach at Williams College for two seasons before coming to Ann Arbor. Gutilla is in charge of directing the U-M novice program.

Head Coach Mark Rothstein
Mark Rothstein is in his 11th year as the head coach of the Michigan rowing team. Rothstein, the only head coach in the program's history, has guided the Maize and Blue to the NCAA Championships eight times. In 2003, Rothstein guided the first varsity eight to a runner-up finish, its best ever showing, at the NCAA Championships en route to a fourth-place team finish. At the 2001 NCAA Championships, U-M had a school-best second-place finish, highlighted by a national boat title by the second varsity eight. He has led the team to four of the seven Big Ten Conference championships (2000, '01, '03, '04). In 2000, '01 and '04 he was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year. He was the Central Region Coach of the Year in 2000 and '01. For his efforts during the 2001 season, he was selected as the National Coach of the Year.

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 25-27 on Melton Hill Lake in Oak Ridge, Tenn., the same sight for this weekend's Central/South Region Sprints.

Probable Lineups

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