Alabama Rowing Advances Five Crews to Sunday Grand Finals at Big 12 Championships
5/13/2017 6:11:00 PM | Rowing
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – The Alabama rowing team opened action at the Big 12 Championships Saturday at Melton Hill Lake, qualifying all five crews to Sunday Grand Final events and posting top-three finishes across the board.
Alabama opened the day with a second-place finish in heat one of the First Varsity 8+, edging out third-place Kansas with a 6:32.237 finish while the Jayhawks crossed in 6:34.075. The Tide's Second Varsity 8+ earned a 6:57.662 finish, good for third place. Alabama's First Varsity 4+ finished neck-and-neck with Oklahoma in heat two, with the Tide ultimately winning by less than a second in 7:15.272 with the Sooners just behind in 7:15.846.
The Tide placed second in heat two of the Second Varsity 4+ in 7:23.359 and wrapped up preliminary action with a second-place finish in the Third Varsity 8+ in 6:46.153, just two seconds behind Oklahoma in 6:44.535. Four crews competed in an exhibition Third Varsity 4+ race to wrap up Saturday action on the water and the Tide placed second in 7:28.357.
With top-three finishes in each of the day's preliminary races, all five of Alabama's crews will advance to Grand Final rounds on Sunday. Grand Finals begin at 9:15 a.m. ET with the Third Varsity 8+ followed by the Second Varsity 4+ (9:45 a.m.), First Varsity 4+ (10:15 a.m.), Second Varsity 8+ (10:45 a.m.) and First Varsity 8+ (11:15 a.m.). The awards ceremony will begin at Noon ET.
For the latest information on Alabama rowing, follow the team on Twitter (@AlabamaRow) and Instagram (AlabamaRow) and Facebook. General athletic news can be found at @UA_Athletics on Twitter and Instagram and Alabama Athletics on Facebook.
