Bearcats Take Third out of Seven Crews in Third Final of WN4+
FOLSOM, Calif. -- Each crew for the Willamette University women's rowing team competed in two races at the Western Intercollegiate Rowing Association (WIRA) Championship Regatta on Saturday, April 25 at Lake Notoma. The Bearcats participated in preliminary heats and Third Finals in the women's varsity 8+ and the women's novice 4+ for D2/D3/Club teams.
"I think we saw some really good competitive effort from all the Willamette rowers competing at WIRA this weekend," Willamette Head Coach Reba Knickerbocker said.
The Willamette WV8+ took second place out of three teams in the Third Final after placing fifth in the third heat of the prelims.
In the prelims, Western Washington University of NCAA Division II earned first place in 7:19.7. Orange Coast College (Calif.) was second at 7:23.1, with University of California-Davis -- an NCAA Division I club team -- in third at 7:27.8. Lewis & Clark College placed fourth at 7:31.2 with Willamette in fifth at 7:38.9.
The Third Final in the WV8+ was won by Mills College (Calif.) at 7:34.1, while Willamette was second at 7:47.7. Arizona State University's club team from NCAA Division I was third in 8:58.7.
"For the varsity 8, we made consistent and steady progress technically throughout the season and up through the last race," Knickerbocker commented. "Normally I wouldn't expect to see technical changes happen in the boat from one competitive row to the next, but this group of rowers were able to make those changes while still being competitive and racing hard."
Rowing for Willamette's varsity 8 were Hannah Puckett (So., Davis, CA/Davis HS) at stroke, Sarah Fish (Jr., Issaquah, WA/Holy Names Academy) at 7-seat, Katy Wallner (Jr., Petaluma, CA/Petaluma HS) at 6-seat, Abby Bernhard (Fr., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS) at 5-seat, Bea McAlister (Jr., Kenmore, WA/Inglemoor HS) at 4-seat, Angela Witty (Jr./Fr., Eugene, OR/Sheldon HS) at 3-seat, Molly Pritchard (So., Medford, OR/South Medford HS) at 2-seat, and Carrie Moore (Fr., Walla Walla, WA/South Eugene HS) at bow.
Julia Di Simone (Fr., Livermore, CA/Livermore Valley Charter Prep) was the coxswain for the varsity 8 crew.
Willamette's WN4+ finished third out of seven crews in the Third Final after placing sixth in the third heat of the prelims.
The preliminary heat was won by Orange Coast in 8:20.6. University of California-Irvine's club team from NCAA Division I was second at 8:26.8, and University of Portland (Ore.) -- also an NCAA Division I club team -- was third at 8:35.2. Humboldt State University from NCAA Division II was fourth in 8:36.4. Arizona State's club team with fifth at 8:40.6 and Willamette was sixth at 8:50.7.
In the Third Final of the WN4+, Sonoma State University's NCAA Division II club team in 9:05.9. The NCAA Division I club team from the University of Oregon was second at 9:16.1 and Willamette was third at 9:19.0. Fourth place went to the Arizona State club team in 9:23.2, while University of Puget Sound was fifth at 9:26.9.
The University of Calfiornia-Berkeley with an NCAA Division I club team was sixth in the Third Final at 9:27.8. University of California-Santa Barbara, also an NCAA Division I club team, was seventh at 9:52.7.
"It's the culmination of a season for most crews, but for our novices it was the culmination of about two weeks of practices and one previous competition," Knickerbocker noted. "They definitely went out and were more physical and competitive than I have seen before."
Competing for WU in the WN4+ were coxswain Navi Hewage (Fr., Walnut Creek, CA/Northgate HS), stroke Sarah Crabb (Fr., Highlands Ranch, CO/Mountain Vista HS), 3-seat Elsa Roush (Fr., Jackson Hole, WA/Jackson Hole HS), 2-seat Gillian Weisenfluh (Fr., Atherton, CA/Menlo Atherton HS), and bow Ingrid Avila (Fr., Redwood City, CA/Summit Prep).
The WIRA Championshps will conclude on Sunday, April 26, but the Bearcats have already completed their participation in the regatta. It was the final event on Willamette's rowing schedule for 2014-15.
"I'm proud of the competitive level that the team reached this year," Knickerbocker said. "Here's to pushing to new heights for next year."
The Willamette women's varsity 8+ took second place in the Third Final for D2/D3/Club teams.
Willamette placed third out of seven teams in the Third Final of the women's novice 4+ for D3/D3/Club teams.
