Brewer's Bronze Highlights U-23 World Championships
7/22/2017 12:36:00 PM | Rowing
PLOVDIV, Bulgaria -- The University of Michigan rowing team's three representatives competing for Team USA at the Under-23 World Championships were all in action Saturday (July 22), closing out the week of international racing with an exciting day on the water. The week's highlight came with returning senior Kendall Brewer and her teammate, Brooke Pierson (Washington), earning a bronze medal in pairs.
The three current or former Wolverines rowed in three different events on the waters of the Marista River in Bulgaria, with two of the three boats securing places in today's A finals.
Brewer's boat was in a very tight finish battling against top competition like Australia, Chile, Romania, Russia and Denmark. The top four boats were within 1.10 seconds of each other after 500 meters, and by the halfway point, the U.S. and Chile were leading the pack with just .04 seconds of separation.
At the 1,500-meter mark of the race, Chile widened its lead slightly, but the U.S. was also putting ground on Australia. However, the Aussies split 1:48.76 over the final 500 meters and eclipsed the Americans by .16 at the finish line (7:17.55). Chile took the gold in 7:15.66 with the Americans earning a stellar bronze medal in 7:17.71.
The first race of the day was the fours boat, with 2017 team co-captain Tessa Yurko in bow seat. Racing in the B final, the lineup of Alison Rusher, Carlisle Wheeler, Alexandra Silverling and Yurko timed 6:59.57 to take fourth place behind Belarus (6:53.52), Australia (6:55.86) and New Zealand (6:56.33).
Rising junior Meghan Gutknecht was also in action, stroking the quad sculls boat in the A final. The lineup of Gutknecht, Savannah Moody, Emily Delleman and Christine Cavallo timed 6:39.60 to finish in sixth place. Great Britain earned gold in 6:22.870.
Michigan will next be represented in international waters during the 2017 World Rowing Junior Championships, to be held Aug. 2-6 in Vilnius, Lithuania. Incoming freshman Kate Burns, an Ann Arbor native, will compete for Team USA.
Players Mentioned
