Crew Opens Season at San Diego Classic
March 31, 1998
SCHEDULE: The Oregon State crew opens its spring season April 4-5 at the prestigious San Diego Crew Classic at Mission Bay. This event is considered one of the best races in the entire country.
THE FIELD: The men's varsity eight crew will be one of 12 teams competing for the Copley Cup while the women's varsity eight will be one of 12 teams competing for the Whittier Cup. The men will row against No. 2 California, No. 5 Harvard, No. 4 Pennsylvania, Stanford and Purdue in heat A. Heat B will consist of No. 1 Washington, No. 7 Wisconsin, No. 6 Yale, No. 10 Temple, Gonzaga and UC Davis. The women's varsity eight will also race in heat A versus No. 8 Michigan, No. 9 Radcliffe, Stanford, Washington State and Ohio State. Heat B is made up of No. 1 Washington, No. 6 Northeastern, California, Wisconsin, Syracuse and Pennsylvania.
OTHER CREWS COMPETING: Oregon State will also be competing in the men's and women's junior varsity races and men's and women's novice races.
DO YOU FLY OR DRIVE - DO YOU USE YOUR OWN BOAT OR BORROW? Oregon State will take six boats to San Diego, leaving Tuesday. Two coaches drive the 1,028 miles in a Ford F-350 one ton truck with trailer. Driving time consists of 20-24 hours, and the coaches will stay one night in a hotel. The rest of the team will fly to San Diego Thursday. Other crews will borrow boats from various crew clubs or college programs at times, and some other teams have their own facility in the San Diego area.
RECEIVING VOTES: Oregon State's men and women's varsity eight each received votes for the U.S. Rowing Association's Top 10, in a poll released March 17. The men's team was joined by Dartmouth, Navy and Cornell as teams receiving votes, while the women's team was joined by California, Wisconsin, Stanford, Cornell and Yale.
LAST YEAR: The varsity eight men's team captured the Petite Final Championship of the Copley Cup, and eighth place overall. The women's varsity eight finished fourth in the Whittier Cup Grand Finals, with only Washington, Virginia and Massachusetts posting better times.
COACHING STAFF: The Oregon State men's coach is Dave Reischman, and he is assisted by Matt Imes. Reischman is in his fourth year and Imes in his first. Imes joined the program after three years as an assistant at Gonzaga. Owen is in his seventh season and he is assisted by fourth-year coach Jane LaRiviere.
REISCHMAN ON THE EVENT: "The Copley Cup Race field consists of seven crews ranked in the top 10, the most ranked teams I have seen in this event in recent memory. This is a great opportunity for us to find out what are base speed is for the spring, and how we rate with some of the best in the nation. Our crews feel good about the work they have put in and how the boats are moving, but there is still plenty of work to be done. The good news is, we are further along than we have been in previous years at this point."
WHO'S MAKING THE TRIP: The following student-athletes will be making the trip to San Diego:
Men's Varsity Eight Travis Carter, Jr., Bend Scott Fortner, So., Rogue River Jayme Dumford, Sr., Veneta Matt Anderson, Jr., Aurora Alex Wahnsiedler, Eugene Patrick O'Hea, Sr., Culver City, CA Nolan Sisett, Sr., Vancouver, B.C. Andy Legard, Jr., McMinnville Peter Skei, Fr., Portland (coxswain)Men's Junior Varsity Eight Chris Rasor, Jr., Beaver Creek Kevin McElhoes, Jr., Cove Zac Benevides, Sr., West Linn Josh O'Connor, Jr., Hines Will Knight, Jon Renholds, Jr., Ashland Brian Cunnington, Sr., Portland Ian Ruef, So., Dallas, OR Eric Richardson, Sr., Knob Noster, MO (Coxswain)
Men's Freshman Eight Adam Hughes, Eugene Sam Bobek, Warrenton Kevin Mann, Corvallis Nathan Pakish, Salinas, CA Joey Hansen, Bakersfield, CA Dan Willey, Dallas, OR Peter Holcomb, Tigard Andrew Jackson, Corvallis Darin Paine, Salem (Coxswain)
Women's Varsity Eight Mara Hendricks, Sr., Billings, MT Anne Godwin, So., Halfway Ona Larsell, Jr., Seal Rock Amanda Rollwage, Portland Sarah Wachs, So., Rainier Jenny Dobis, Jr., Summit Amanda Westfall, So., Salem Kari Lovro, Sr., Hillsboro Stephanie Seaton, Sr., Clackamas (Coxswain)
Women's Junior Varsity Eight Melissa Johnson, Jr., Portland Kristen Lovro, So., Hillsboro Maiya Anderson, Sr., Bremerton, WA Melanie Griffith, So., Portland Jennifer Schones, Jr., Siletz Keri Baga, So., Albany Jackie Hansen, So., Dallas, OR Lisa Murawski, Sr., Beaverton Kristen Kyles, So., Athena (Coxswain)
Women's Novice Eight Laura Gray, So., Forest Grove Cassie Bouska, So., Myrtle Point Abigail Roos, Fr., Sherwood Jenni Johnson, Fr., Lake Oswego Christian Greene, Fr., Salem Jenny Satterberg, Fr., Portland Kristina Small, Jr., Anchorage, AK Angela Wright, Fr., Juneau, AK Tonya Klann, So., Prineville (Coxswain)
