June 2, 2012

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2012 IRA National Championships Cooper River • Camden, N.J. Distance: 2 Kilometers

Varsity Eight: Petite Final 1. Princeton 5:36.740 2. Wisconsin 5:37.917 3. Cornell 5:38.738 4. Navy 5:38.745 5. Penn 5:40.445 6. Yale 5:41.213  Second Varsity Eight: Grand Final 1. Washington 5:31.616 2. Brown 5:33.872 3. Harvard 5:35.264 4. California 5:35.477 5. Wisconsin 5:35.938 6. Stanford 5:54.096  Novice Eight: Petite Final 1. Princeton 5:45.293 2. Boston University 5:45.684 3. Navy 5:45.781 4. Yale 5:50.161 5. Wisconsin 5:51.341 6. Dartmouth 5:55.277  Open Four: Grand Final 1. Washington 6:15.257 2. Wisconsin 6:17.344 3. California 6:20.029 4. Harvard 6:25.176 5. Brown 6:27.851 6. Navy 6:36.954  Lightweight Four: Heat 1, Grand Final 1. Wisconsin 6:23.510 2. Cornell 6:24.286 3. Yale 6:25.954 4. Columbia 6:38.922 5. Georgetown 6:50.325 ---- 1. Navy 6:18.126 2. Cornell 6:20.519 3. Wisconsin 6:21.931 4. Yale 6:25.215 5. Harvard 6:25.759 6. MIT 6:28.804  Varsity Four: Petite Final 1. Holy Cross 6:24.034 2. Harvard 6:25.533 3. Wisconsin 6:26.757 4. Temple 6:29.944 5. Boston University 6:31.081 6. Yale 6:36.525  Wisconsin Men's Rowing Online • @BadgerRowing on Twitter • Wisconsin Men's Rowing on Facebook • U.S. Cellular Text Alerts  |  Mobile UW App • InsideBadgerSports.com

CAMDEN, N.J. -- The Wisconsin men's rowing team medaled twice and finished eighth as a team at the Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) National Championships Saturday in Camden, N.J.

Aided by a heavy tail wind on the Cooper River, the fastest times of the weekend were set Sunday, as Wisconsin finished eighth in the varsity eight race while claiming a silver medal in the open four race and bronze in the lightweight four event.

In addition to appearances in the open and lightweight four grand finals, the Badgers also raced in the second varsity eight grand final, finishing fifth. UW raced in the petite final in the varsity eight, novice eight and varsity four events.

"We can do a lot better as a team than we did this weekend," head coach Chris Clark said. "We did last year, and I expect to again next year."

The varsity eight petite final was one of the closest races of the day, as all six crews finished within five seconds of each other. Wisconsin finished in 5:37.917, just 1.177 seconds behind Princeton to finish second in the petite final and eighth overall.

"We never really rowed a complete race this weekend," Clark said. "Today was better, but not up to the standards of a varsity eight and what we are capable of."

Racing in the grand final, the second varsity eight, Wisconsin finished fifth with a time of 5:35.938 in a close race between the top five crews. Washington won, but was just 4.322 seconds ahead of the Badgers, with three boats in between. Wisconsin caught California, Brown and Harvard with 500 meters to go, but couldn't gain a lead in the final strokes. Less than .7 seconds separated third-place Harvard and the Badgers.

"They raced well, it was one of the fastest times they've had all year," Clark said. "We were out of the medals, but were less than five seconds out, whereas last year we finished third and were 10 seconds out."

In the novice eight petite final, the Badgers couldn't maintain a strong start, finishing fifth in the race and 11th overall with a time of 5:51.341. A tight race between five crews with less than 500 meters left saw Princeton, Boston University and Navy claim the top three spots in the petite final, all finishing within .5 seconds of each other. The Badgers were six seconds behind Princeton and 1.180 seconds behind 4th-place Yale.

"They finished on a high with a strong race," Clark said. "The first-year rowers have a long way to go, but today was building towards the future."

Wisconsin claimed its first medal in the open four race, finishing second to Washington in 6:17.344. It was a tight race between the two crews for the entire 2000 meter race, with the Badgers being edged by about just 2.087 seconds, or about two seats. The second-place finish marks the second-straight year Wisconsin finished second in the open four event.

After winning its heat early in the morning, the lightweight four capped its day of racing with a third-place finish in the grand final. Wisconsin's heat win was in 6:23.510, while its grand final time was quicker by nearly two seconds, finishing in 6:21.931.

In the varsity four, Wisconsin finished third in the petite final and ninth overall with a time of 6:26.757. The Badgers were just over two seconds behind Holy Cross and one second behind Harvard in a tight race among the top-three finishers.

Washington claimed national championships in all five heavyweight events, winning the varsity eight, second varsity eight, novice eight, varsity four and open four events. The Huskies also finished first in the overall team standings with 198 points. Wisconsin finished 8th with 121 points.


Wisconsin Lineups:

First Varsity Eight
Coxswain: Michael Patinkin, Luke Juckkett, Christopher Stiles, Dan Agostinacchio, Tim Aghai, Leon Suvak, Cody Rissman, Sam Hoidal, Ben Ruble

Second Varsity Eight
Coxswain: Eric Rhiel, Kyle Anderson, Lowell McNicholas, Ryan Thompson, Connor Cahill, Kevin Ripley, Dan Gengler, Andrew Weiland, Matthew Hinkamp

Varsity Four
Coxswain: Lenny Manning, Zach Niemeyer, Brad Betts, Chuck Holtz, James Oldeschulte

Open Four
Coxswain: Robert Greco, Logan Hietpas, Alec Hub, Mitch King, Charlie Campbell