Cards' Novice 8+ Crews to Compete at Upcoming SIRA Championships
April 20, 2007 | Rowing
April 20, 2007
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - After earning the program's best ever win last weekend at the Windermere Real Estate Rowing Classic, the University of Louisville's varsity crews will take the weekend off while the Cards' Novice 8+ crews will compete at the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championships on Saturday and Sunday in Oak Ridge, Tenn.
The Cards will open the event on Saturday with the 2nd Novice 8+ final at 1:20 p.m. ET, against Tennessee, Central Florida, Alabama, Georgia and Purdue. At 3:30 p.m., the Cards' will compete in the Novice 8+ semifinals against Tulsa, Kansas State, West Virginia, Alabama and Cincinnati, with the top three finishers advancing to the "A" Final on Sunday.
"This is a big event for the novice team and they've been preparing for this race and the BIG EAST Championships throughout the year," said U of L novice team head coach Laurie Featherstone. "We've had a good year of training and the women have had to try out for all of the boats through the erg testing and seat racing, so they certainly have worked hard to get a spot in a boat."
Cards' Varsity 8+ Crew 18th in USRowing/CRCA Top 20
After knocking off reigning national champion California, the No. 5 ranked crew in the nation at time, during last week's Windermere Real Estate Rowing Classic in Stanford, Calif., the Cards' Varsity 8+ crew moved up three spots to No. 18 in this week's USRowing/CRCA Top 20 Coaches Poll.
"We're pleased to be in the Top 20 again and certainly look forward to some great competition in the coming weeks," said U of L head coach Richard Ruggieri. "With a great deal of movement in the polls, it's certainly anyone's game with regards to NCAA selection. But it won't be an option for us if we don't find more speed and experience."
Following this weekend's races at the SIRA Championships, the Cards' varsity and novice crews will compete at the BIG EAST Championships on April 29 in Worcester, Mass.
