Oct. 13, 2007
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - The UCF women's rowing team shined in its first event of the fall season as both varsity eight boats advanced to the night sprints at the Head of the Oklahoma on Saturday.
The Knights battled winds gusting up to 20 miles per hour during the 2.5 mile head race in the afternoon. The varsity eight "A" entry, which featured coxswain Brittney Skidmre, Megan Harrell, Jordynn Pauls, Krystina Sarff, Lauren Hampson, Emma Gresson, Stephanie Adams, Erin Riegel and Caitlin Pauls, posted a time of 15:31.81 to finish in the top six. Meanwhile, the varsity eight "B" went 16:09.09 for 10th place.
"Our two coxswains did a great job steering the course and the rowers performed well in fairly rough conditions," said UCF head coach Leeanne Crain. "Qualifying both eights for the 500 meter night sprints was our goal going into this race."
The top 12 varsity eight boats qualified for the night sprints, a 500m race under the lights. Among those UCF's "A" crew faced in the grand final were Stanford and UCLA, two fellow 2007 NCAA Championship participants.
In the night sprints, the UCF "B" crew won the petite final at 1:38.44 with Duke's "A" following in 1:39.34, while the UCF "A" boat was fifth in the grand final at 1:39.08.
Next up for the Knights, the novice crew races at the Hatter Classic on Oct. 27 before both the lightweight and open squads compete at the Head of the Hooch from Nov. 3-4.
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Grand Final
1. Washington State "A", 1:33.68
2. UCLA, 1:36.84
3. Stanford, 1:37.23
4. Washington State "B", 1:37.99
5. UCF "A", 1:39.08
6. Texas "A", DNS
Petite Final
1. UCF "B", 1:38.44
2. Duke "A", 1:39.34
3. Tulsa, 1:41.28
4. Duke "B", 1:43.53