No. 3 Rowing Wraps Up Regular Season in Michigan – Ohio State Buckeyes
4/12/2007 12:00:00 AM | Rowing
April 12, 2007
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The third-ranked Ohio State rowing team faces No. 11 Michigan and No. 20 Michigan State Saturday in its final regatta of the regular season. The races will take place at Lake Ovid in Laingsburg, Mich.
The format of the regatta is a double dual, with the Buckeyes racing Michigan State in the morning and Michigan in the afternoon. Fellow Big Ten institution Indiana also will be competing. There will be a total of five events, with the first and second varsity eight, first and second varsity four and first novice eight racing in both sessions.
Buckeyes Remain Third in the Nation
After posting its third and fourth victories against nationally-ranked squads, the Ohio State first varsity eight remained at No. 3 in the most recent CRCA/USRowing poll released Wednesday. It is the highest the Buckeyes have been ranked since the 2005 season. OSU’s 1V8 defeated former No. 1 Princeton and No. 2 Virginia March 24 and 31, respectively. Last weekend, the Buckeyes edged then-No. 12 Tennessee and No. 16 Michigan.
OSU’s 1V8 Earns Back-to-Back Boat of the Week Honors
The first varsity eight earned back-to-back Big Ten Boat of the Week honors, March 26 and April 2. The Buckeye crew of Claudia Wurzel, Justine Mahler, Zuzanna Trzcinska, Patricia Goodeman, Gabriele Albertaviciute, Jessica Shepherd, Annabelle Fago, Briony Clare and coxswain Susanne Wilson earned its awards after upsetting then-No. 2 Virginia in the ACC/Big Ten Duals March 31 and then-No. 1 and defending NCAA champ Princeton to open the season March 24.
Last Time Out: Tennessee/Michigan
Ohio State battled tough weather conditions and won two races against Tennessee and Michigan April 7 at Griggs Reservoir on the Scioto River in Columbus, Ohio in its only home regatta of the season. The third-ranked Buckeye first varsity eight posted its third and fourth wins against nationally-ranked opponents this season, edging No. 12 Tennessee and No. 16 Michigan in the final race of the regatta. In the first varsity eight race, the Ohio State finished with a time of 6:41.19 to edge the Wolverines at 6:43.54 and the Lady Vols at 6:47.48.
The Buckeyes took second in the second varsity eight race with time of 6:45.44 with Tennessee winning at 6:41.26. Ohio State also won the first novice eight race, defeating Michigan by more than seven seconds.
Tough Competition
Six of Ohio State’s 2007 regular-season opponents are currently ranked in the CRCA/USRowing poll, including No. 1 Brown, No. 9 Princeton, No. 13 Virginia and No. 15 Tennessee. Four fellow Big Ten teams also are ranked in Minnesota (10), Michigan (11), Wisconsin (18) and Michigan State (20).
Ohio State Looks to Defend Two Crowns
The Buckeyes aim to defend two championship titles from the 2006 season. Ohio State became just the second Big Ten team to win multiple conference championships, capturing its second crown last April. OSU also won the Big Ten title in 2002.
In the Central Region, the Buckeyes will pursue their fifth consecutive championship. Ohio State nabbed its fourth in as many years in 2006, finishing first overall in the point standings for the first time since 2003. OSU was just the second team to win both the Big Ten and Central Region championships in the same season.
Next up for the Buckeyes
After a week off, Ohio State heads to Madison, Wis., to compete in the Big Ten championship April 28. The Badgers have not hosted the event since 2000, when Madison was the site of the first-ever Big Ten championship.
