Rowing Earns Three Medals at Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Championships
4/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | Rowing
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. The Alabama Rowing team finished third overall at the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Championships, which was held on Lake Melton in Oak Ridge, Tenn., this weekend, powered by a trio of top-two finishes, including a gold medal.
"This is the first time that we've won a gold medal at these championships and it's the first time we've had three boats medal," UA head coach Larry Davis said. "It's also the second time that we've placed in the top three here as a team, which is a positive step for such a young program."
Alabama took gold in the Varsity 4+ race, posting an 8:06.10 to finish ahead of Tulsa, which crossed the line at 8:08.93. The Crimson Tide also won its preliminary race in the Varsity 4+ competition to advance to the Grand Finals.
Alabama's First Novice 8+ crew took second place behind Indiana. The Hoosiers posted a time of 7:16.1 while the Tide came away with a 7:20.1. The Tide also took the silver medal in the Second Novice 8+ race, posting a 7:34.05 while Oklahoma took the gold with a 7:26.5.
"It was a good weekend, but there are definitely things we need to work on going forward," Davis said. "We're going to focus on getting a little more solid in our top two boats. Both of them had some opportunities to medal today, but over the last 500-meters we didn't do what we needed to make that happen."
The Tide's First Varsity 8+ was sixth with a time of 7:03.99 and the Second Varsity 8+ was fifth at 7:27.97.
Alabama returns to action at the University of Central Florida Regatta May 1 in Orlando, Fla.
