Michigan Set for Racing at Ohio State This Weekend
4/23/2015 12:00:00 AM | Rowing
April 23, 2015
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Saturday, April 25 -- vs. No. 1 Ohio State, No. 17 Syracuse, Michigan State (Columbus, Ohio.), 11 a.m.
The 13th-ranked University of Michigan rowing team returns to action this weekend (Saturday, April 25) at top-ranked Ohio State, where the Buckeyes will host No. 17 Syracuse and Michigan State as well. The races will be held at the Griggs Reservoir on the Scioto River starting at 11 a.m. in Columbus, Ohio.
Michigan returns to racing after a weekend off, which gave the Wolverines an opportunity to improve on the water at Belleville Lake.
"It was good to be able to train through the weekend and work on some things," said head coach Mark Rothstein. "We had some good practices. It was really a good opportunity to train and not focus so much on preparing for a race."
The four teams will compete four-wide, rotating lanes (2-5) throughout the two-hour race period, starting with the 2N8 race at 11 a.m., with the Wolverines in Lane 4. Races will take place in 20 minute intervals, as the 2N8 will be followed by the 1N8, 3V4, 2V4, 1V4, 2V8, and finally the 1V8 at 1 p.m.
Competing four-wide, against two Big Ten rivals, and a nationally ranked Syracuse team will give the Wolverines a bit of a flavor of how racing will be at the Big Ten Championships in a few weeks (May 16-17).
"Both (Ohio State and Michigan State) are great programs that have had a lot of success over the years. Those are always two teams that we measure ourselves against," Rothstein said. "I don't think we've every raced Syracuse in the regular season, so we're really excited to race them as well."
Michigan hosted its first event of the spring season on April 11, competing against Indiana and Iowa in a Big Ten Double Dual. Michigan's first varsity four crew -- Nadia Roohparvar (coxswain), Mallory Jamett, Emma Burke, Kathleen Peng and Mariel Ziperski -- had the strongest performance of the day, earning a morning win against Indiana in 7:28.10 before recording an afternoon victory in 7:24.10 against Iowa.
"There's a lot of parity and a lot of competition with the fours and every day in practice is a battle," Rothstein said. "That bodes well for our chances in those events."
After narrow losses in the morning session to Indiana, Michigan's varsity eight crews both earned wins over the Hawkeyes in the afternoon, as the 2V8 clocked in at 6:33.7, and the 1V8 finished in 6:29.50.
"We're looking for continued improvement across the board in all the events," Rothstein said. "I want to see us race better than we did two weekends ago. We want to make sure we're improving through the spring."
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS (subject to change)
11 a.m. -- Second Novice Eight
11:20 a.m. -- First Novice Eight
11:40 a.m. -- Third Varsity Four
Noon -- Second Varsity Four
12:20 p.m. -- First Varsity Four
12:40 p.m. -- Second Varsity Eight
1 p.m. -- First Varsity Eight
PROBABLE LINEUPS
Varsity Eight Crews
1V8
Hannah Sherman (coxswain), Jessica Eiffert, Kendall Brewer, Alex Spaulding, Tessa Yurko, Kaitlin Wright, Sarah Hudnall, Felicity Cain, and Louisa Freeman.
2V8
Francesca Derteano (coxswain), Adena Coste, Libby Murray, Lexie Beemer, Hannah Moscati, Allison Boss, Abby Vare, Susie Stevens, and Kinsey Vear.
Varsity Four Crews
1V4
Emma Knorps (coxswain), Mallory Jammett, Karla McDaniel, Kathleen Peng, Mariel Ziperski.
2V4
Nadia Roohparvar (coxswain), Laura Foster, Emma Burke, Lauren Gilbert, Rae Oleshansky.
3V4
Noa Rothstein (coxswain), Kelsi Harden, Kara Puidokas, Kalia Krichko, Haley Zapolski.
Novice Eight Crews
1N8
Michelle Kraus (coxswain), Hannah Bashore, Olivia Flessland, Jackie Dallier, Colleen Gaffney, Georgia Williams, Rebecca Martin, Hannah Hodges, and Kaitlyn Mills.
2N8
Alexis Jones (coxswain), Madeleine Rocco, Bhillie Luciani, Rebecca Sorgenfrei, Brita Sharef, Hanna Zlotnick, Emily Svitek, Bridget Hennessy, and Riely Kuznicki.
QUICK HITS
· Michigan continues a tradition of competing at the Griggs Reservoir on the Scioto River, as the Wolverines have raced in Columbus in every year of its existence as a program. Last year, Michigan kicked off the spring season with a dual event against the Buckeyes in Columbus on March 29, 2014. The Wolverines recorded four race wins on the day in the 1V4, 3V4, 1N8 and 2N8.
· Michigan competes against Ohio State and Michigan State in the same event for the first time since April 13, 2013, when the Wolverines hosted the Buckeyes, Spartans and Indiana, racing in four lanes in that event as well at Belleville Lake.
· Michigan was ranked No. 13 in the latest USRowing/Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association poll, one of four Big Ten teams in the polls, joining Ohio State (No. 1), Wisconsin (No. 9) and Indiana (No. 11).
· Michigan's 1V8 crew is the 14th fastest in the nation according to the latest cMax rankings, which uses a mathematical model that compares finishing times with other crews considering: 1) general race conditions (distance, current, wind, etc.), 2) date of the race (more recent races count more than races earlier in the season), and 3) whether the team was "pressed" in the race.
· After this weekend, Michigan will have raced against four of the top 10 crews in the nation in the latest US/Rowing Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association Poll, including No. 1 Ohio State, No. 3 Virginia, No. 4 Brown, and No. 8 Princeton. Michigan's 1V4 crew finished ahead of Princeton on March 28, and Michigan's 1V8 crew edged Virginia on April 4.
· Fans can get live updates on race results through Twitter by following @umichrowing.
· Michigan has placed in the top two at the Big Ten Championships in 11 of 15 years that the conference rowing meet has been held, including last season's second-place finish. Michigan has claimed five Big Ten team titles (2000, 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2012).
· Coach Rothstein is in his 19th season at the helm of the women's varsity rowing program. Rothstein's teams have finished in the top five of the NCAA Championships a total of eight times, including two runner-up finishes (2001, '12).
· Senior port/starboard Jessica Eiffert earned Pocock All-America first team honors as well as All-Big Ten second team honors last year and will lead Michigan's first varsity eight along with senior coxswain Hannah Sherman, who was a CRCA All-Central Region second team selection last season.
· For those interested in volunteering at Michigan's home regatta on Saturday, May 2, vs. Louisville, please contact Katie Miranto at mirantok@umich.edu or 734-763-3824
Communications Contact: Jeffrey Weinstein (734) 763-4423
