April 28, 2006
ORLANDO - UCF women's rowing head coach Leeanne Crain announced on Friday that five high school standouts have signed National Letters of Intent (NLI) and will join the Golden Knights this fall. Elizabeth Albus, Lauren Hampson, Meagan Harrell, Kathleen Noble and Jordynn Pauls have all inked NLIs with UCF.
Albus and Hampson are both from Sarasota, Fla. Harrell is from Virginia and Noble and Pauls are a pair of Canadian athletes.
"We are very excited about having Liz, Meagan, Jordynn, Lauren and Kathleen join us next season," said Crain. "Each of these young women will make an impact on the team. We are thrilled about the level of talent we are starting to attract to our program."
Albus attends the Pine View School and rows for Sarasota Crew. She has rowed as a lightweight for four years and helped her crew to a first-place finish in the lightweight four at the Florida State Championships in 2005. This spring, she has earned a seat in the varsity eight boat and is the team captain.
Hampson also competes for Sarasota Crew and attends Riverview High School. She rows with Sarasota Crew's varsity eight boat and guided her boat to a victory at the Head of Indian Creek in Miami this past fall. This spring, her varsity eight boat captured second at the Florida Henley, giving Sarasota Crew a second-place seed going into the Florida Scholastic Championships. Last year, Hampson rowed in the novice four which went undefeated for the entire head and sprint seasons.
Harrell rows for her scholastic team at Great Bridge High School in Chesapeake, Va. She was a member of Great Bridge's novice eight boat that won regionals in Virginia and won States in 2005. This year, Harrell competed as a lightweight at the CRASH-B World Indoor Rowing Championship and won a bronze medal in the final against two international competitors.
Noble attends the Claremont Secondary School in Victoria, British Columbia. She is a lightweight rower for the Victoria City Rowing Club. Noble has also competed in track and field, cross country, swimming and soccer.
Pauls will come to UCF from the Sir Winston Churchill Secondary School in St. Catharines, Ontario. She has been rowing for two years, capturing victories in the junior heavy eight at the Canadian Secondary School Rowing Championships in 2004 and a first-place showing in the junior heavy eight at the Stotesbury Cup in 2004. Her sister, Caitlin, is a sophomore on the UCF rowing team. Caitlin is the stroke for UCF's nationally-ranked varsity eight boat.
UCF is currently enjoying a strong spring season. The Golden Knights' varsity eight boat entered the national rankings for the first time in school history on April 19 and is now ranked 19th in the country. As a program, UCF is ranked fourth in the NCAA South Region poll.