Oregon State Crew Races at National Championships
May 28, 1998
CAMDEN, N.J. -
CAMDEN, New Jersey - The Oregon State University Mens Varsity Eight boat will be competing for 13-18th place at Saturdays finals of the Intercollegiate Rowing Association National Championships. The Championships are being held on the Cooper River.
The Varsity Eight finished third in their opening heat with a time of 5:56.8, trailing Washington (5:43.4) and Wisconsin (5:50.2), and finishing ahead of Michigan (5:58.8) and Grand Valley State (6:10.2).
"We raced okay in the heat race," Beaver Head Coach Dave Reischman said. "We were flat off the line and I thought we would have that corrected by the repechage. We talked about our start between races."
In the repechage heat the Beavers finished third, finishing two-tenths of a second behind second-place New Hampshire. OSU rowed a 5:55.8, compared to 5;55.6 by New Hampshire. The third-place finish relegates Oregon State into the third level finals.
"My crew just wasnt ready, and I accept the responsibility," Reischman said. "I give the crew credit for rowing hard to nearly edge New Hampshire at the finish, but it was our start again. We just were a little flat today."
New Hampshire opened as much as a three-and-a-half second lead on the Beavers during the 2,000-meter race, before Oregon State charged back late in the event. If Oregon State would have overtaken New Hampshire, it would have been racing in the Petite Finals, which determines seventh through 12th place.
The Second Varsity Eight boat finished fourth in their six-boat heat with a time of 6:01.6. The boat will race Friday at 7 a.m. PDT for a chance to go for seventh place on Saturday.
"If we have a great race we have a chance to finish somewhere between seventh and 12th place," Reischman said of the second varsity boat. "If we have a good race, that might not be enough to give us that opportunity. We could row very well and still be relegated to the C Finals."
The Second Varsity Eight was hampered by one of its members having a virus and a high temperature, and another contracting food poisoning. Both athletes were able to race in the heat race, but it forced Reischman and assistant coach Matt Imes to row in their place during the practice sessions.
Mens Varsity Eight Heat 4: Washington, 5:43.4; Wisconsin, 5:50.2; Oregon State, 5:56.8; Michigan, 5:58.8; Grand Valley State, 6:10.2
Repechage Heat 4: California, 5:52.1; New Hampshire, 5:55.6; Oregon State, 5:55.8; Rutgers, 6:06.3
Second Varsity Eight Heat 3: Princeton, 5:42.9; Brown, 5:52.8; Boston U., 5:57.2; Oregon State, 6:01.6; Drexel, 6:02.4; Michigan, 6:07.9
