May 26, 2009
NCAA DIVISION II WOMEN'S ROWING CHAMPIONSHIP
COOPER RIVER • CHERRY HILL, N.J.
FRIDAY, MAY 29
Varsity Eight Heat 1 — 8:00 a.m. Pacific Time (11:00 a.m. EDT)
Varsity Eight Heat 2 — 8:15 a.m. Pacific Time (11:15 a.m. EDT)
SATURDAY, MAY 30
Varsity Eight Repechage — 7:30 a.m. Pacific Time (10:30 a.m. EDT)
SUNDAY, MAY 31
Varsity Eight Petite Final — 6:15 a.m. Pacific Time (9:15 a.m. EDT)
Varsity Eight Grand Final — 6:30 a.m. Pacific Time (9:30 a.m. EDT)
For the second time in three weeks the Seattle Pacific varsity eight crew embarks on a cross country voyage, this time to take part in the 2009 NCAA Women’s Rowing Championships, May 29-31 on the Cooper River in Cherry Hill, N.J. SPU is one of two, eight-oared crews issued an at-large invitation to compete at the NCAAs. The Falcons will row at the NCAA Regatta for the second time in their history. An SPU crew participated at the 2007 championships and won the petite final for varsity eights, placing fifth overall.
Championship Format
The Division II championship field consists of four teams and two additional schools with only varsity eight entries. Third-ranked Seattle Pacific and No. 4 Dowling are the at-large selections. Those two crews will compete in the varsity eight races against team qualifiers Mercyhurst, Nova Southeastern, Philadelphia University and defending champion Western Washington. Along with a varsity eight, those four schools also have a varsity four crew and will vie for the team title, which is determined by combining the results from the two events. Competition begins Friday, May 29, with a pair of three-boat heats in the eights. Winners of each heat advance to the grand finals Sunday, May 31 while the remaining crews compete in repechage races Saturday, May 30. The top-two repechage finishers advance to the grand final and the other two to the petite final.
On the Road Again
Another cross-country journey awaits the Falcons crew that returned from Philadelphia on May 9 after a successful showing at the Dad Vail Regatta, where they finished second to Mercyhurst among Division II eights. SPU outraced Dowling, Philadelphia and Nova Southeastern, all NCAA Championship invitees. While back East in early May, the Falcons paid a visit to the NCAA’s Cooper River Course. This week SPU makes the same 2,400-mile flight to Philadelphia and drives 18 miles to Cherry Hill, N.J.
Northwest Neighbors
The Falcons enlisted the help of a couple Northwest schools in their NCAA Championships endeavor. SPU’s racing shell, the “Christus Victor,” is being transported across the country on a trailer driven by the University of Washington coaches. Another Northwest school is assisting with the loan of their oars. The Falcons used their own oars at the May 8-9 Dad Vail Regatta in Philadelphia. Those oars were delayed in shipping back to Seattle, forcing the crew to practice with borrowed blades from Tacoma’s Pacific Lutheran University. When the SPU oars didn’t arrive in time to be shipped to the East Coast, the loaners were sent instead. The gold and black of PLU was painted over with the trademark SPU white blades and the inverted “V” pattern in maroon.
Local Flavor
The Division II championships are held in conjunction with the Division I and III competitions. The Northwest will be well represented at the NCAA regatta with a pair of teams in each division. Seattle Pacific and Western Washington will be joined by Division I competitors Washington and Oregon State along with Division III crews from Puget Sound and Willamette. Separate champions will be declared in each division.
Ranking Report
Seattle Pacific is the nation’s third-ranked varsity eight crew, moving up May 13 from the No. 5 position it held for most of the season. The Falcons rose in the poll after beating then higher-ranked Dowling and Philadelphia at the Dad Vail Regatta. Mercyhurst, the 2004 champion, is currently ranked No. 1 and Western Washington is No. 2. WWU won the last four Division II team and varsity eight championships.
Coaching Staff
Seattle Pacific is in its 31st season of intercollegiate women’s crew competition, the 19th with Keith Jefferson at the helm. He took over the head coaching post prior to the 1990-91 season after serving as an assistant on the staff since 1987. Jefferson was an SPU oarsman from 1980 to 1983. Joining Jefferson on the staff is a pair of first-year assistant coaches, both of them former Falcons rowers. Katie Wolff is a 2008 graduate who rowed for SPU from 2006-08. Dave Stalsbroten graduated in 2006 from SPU after rowing in 2003 and 2004.
Quoting Coach Keith Jefferson
“It’s hard to encapsulate what has gone into this, to sum up a whole year’s worth of unbelievable volume of work and effort that these gals put into this. We’re happy to have another chance to row at the NCAA Championships. It’s very much a comforting endorsement that says we are on track and can take even a small group and, with the right principles, work ethic and attitude, keep competing and getting faster. We’ve been out there grinding it out. I always knew we had the potential. Then at Dad Vail we put that solid rubber stamp on it. This group is tough, mature and positive, and that has been the key to their success.
“The last time we were at the NCAAs (2007) we didn’t know what to expect, both from a regatta and results perspective. This one is a lot different. We know what to expect. We will have seen and raced every single crew that is there. We’re going out there with Dad Vail behind us, having raced all these people. We raced and won the petite final two years ago and so our expectations this year are that we will be in that final four and we will be pushing the two ranked crews ahead of us all the way to the finish line. It’s a different view of things. Two years ago we were just trying to do our best and see if we could get in the grand final. This year we have a little more depth and we have a little more speed on the average and a way better maturity. This one’s got a much better feel to it.”
The Crew
SPU’s varsity eight crew is directed by freshman coxswain Annie Mulder (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian). The rowers are stroke Rachel Savage (Sr./Encinitas, Calif./San Dieguito), No. 7 Emily Pitts (So./Normandy Park, Wash.), No. 6 Eleni Johnsen (So./University Place, Wash./Tacoma School of the Arts), No. 5 Katie Degner (Jr./Hillsboro, Ore./Glencoe), No. 4 Lacey Sheridan (So./Sacramento, Calif./Rio Americano), No. 3 Holly Allan (Sr./Bothell, Wash./Cedar Park Christian), No. 2 Katy Stine (Fr./South Berwick, Maine/Portsmouth Christian Academy) and bow Katja Ibsen (Fr./Livermore, Calif./Granada).
2007 NCAA Review
The Seattle Pacific women’s eight clocked a time of 7:24.93 two win the 2007 petite final, placing fifth overall in the only previous NCAA Championships appearance. The Falcons finished third in the opening heats in 7:25.60 and missed out on a grand final berth by two seconds with a third-place repechage time of 7:08.37.
Did You Know?
Senior Rachel Savage is the lone member of the current crew from the 2007 boat that made SPU’s only previous NCAA Championships appearance .... The Falcons roster includes just 13 athletes, one-third the size of the 39-woman roster of Western Washington ... Junior No. 5 seat Katie Degner can’t swim and is afraid of fish. She is featured in a
May 26 Seattle Times story ... Five SPU rowers were named to the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Academic Team: Rachel Savage (3.90, Visual Communications), Emily Pitts (3.63, Food & Nutrition Sciences), Holly Allan (3.42, Mathematics), Katie Degner (3.42, Exercise Science) and Eleni Johnsen (3.35, Interior Design).