April 9, 2010
WASHINGTON, D.C. (UCFAthletics.com) - Battling 18 mph tailwinds, with even stronger wind gusts, the UCF rowing team managed to take a pair of wins from Columbia Friday night at the George Washington Invitational on the Potomac River.
"Overall, I feel we handled the conditions fairly well," head coach Becky Cramer said. "We just need to make some adjustments in our racing in the second varsity and the varsity four. Both the varsity eight and novice eight found a good rhythm and each had a good race."
The Knights' varsity eight boat posted the most impressive win of the evening in the day's finale, defeating the Lions with a time of 6:12.5. Columbia would cross the finish line almost four seconds after the Black and Gold, clocking in at 6:16.4. Heading into the regatta, both UCF and Columbia were receiving votes in the latest Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association/USRowing Poll.
In the opening race of the afternoon for UCF, the novice eight boat edged the competition with a time of 6:52.4, just ahead of Columbia's 6:53.2.
The Knights' varsity four, second varsity four and second varsity eight also competed against the Lions, with the varsity four posting a time of 7:14.1. The second varsity four crossed the finish in 8:49.3, while the second varsity eight finished 9.8 seconds behind Columbia.
The Black and Gold continues competition at the George Washington Invitational Saturday, where it will race against Navy in the morning session, which begins at 8:06 a.m. with the novice 8+ event, before concluding the regatta with races against St. Joeseph's. Saturday's afternoon session versus the Hawks is scheduled to begin at 1:36 p.m. for the Knights, with the varsity eight squad closing out the regatta with a 3:24 p.m. start time
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to www.UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit www.UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
George Washington Invitational Results
Women's Novice Eight
1-UCF 6:52.4
2-Columbia 6:53.2
Women's Second Varsity Four
1-Columbia 7:33.3
2-UCF 8:49.3
Women's Varsity Four
1-Columbia 7:05.9
2-UCF 7:14.1
Women's Second Varsity Eight
1-Columbia +:09.8
2-UCF no time
Women's Varsity Eight
1-UCF 6:12.5
2-Columbia 6:16.4
George Washington Invitational Schedule
Morning Session vs. Navy
8:06 a.m. - Novice Eight
8:28 a.m. - Second Varsity Four
9:00 a.m. - Varsity Four
9:28 a.m. - Second Varsity Eight
9:56 a.m. - Varsity Eight
Afternoon Session vs. St. Joseph's
1:36 p.m. - Novice Eight
1:58 p.m. - Second Varsity Four
2:26 p.m. - Varsity Four
2:56 p.m. - Second Varsity Eight
3:24 p.m. - Varsity Eight
-UCF-