May 12, 2003

FAIRFAX, VA...The George Mason women's rowing team closed out its season this past weekend at the Dad Vail Regatta in Philadelphia. Among the program highlights were a sixth-place overall finish by the Varsity Lightweight Four and a strong showing from the Varsity Eight.

"There are over 110 teams from across the country competing in this regatta, which is biggest collegiate race in the country," said Patriot head coach Paul Rassam.

The Varsity Lightweight Four - coxswain Nancy Irby, 4: Meia Raboteau, 3: Megan Duvall, 2: Cristina Gonzalez and 1: Amanda Scott - finished second in their heat (8:00.5) and sixth in the final (8:14.6).

"Despite drawing the notorious lane six, they had a great heat," said Rassam. "During the middle of the race they made a move from fourth to second by passing a quick-starting Central Florida team, and then they held off a strong sprint from Central Florida to keep the second-place finish.

"In the final, the other teams were just too strong and experienced," explained Rassam. "But it was a great showing, especially for such a young boat."

The Varsity Eight, after finishing fourth in its heat (7:27.6), needed to finish among the top two boats in the repechage to advance to the semifinals, but it came up shy with a third-place finish (6:59.4) that was just six seconds behind second-place. Mason's Eight was coxswain Annmarie Fitzpatrick, 8: Laurel Sachleben, 7: Ally Chewning, 6: Patricia Angelo, 5: Lindsay English, 4: Melissa Sanford, 3: Laura Craig, 2: Paige Beaudion and 1: Liz Judge.

"We knew it would come down to the repechage, so they conserved some energy during their heat and then let it all fly during the repechage and probably had their best race of the year," said Rassam. "With 1,200 meters down, it was dead even between the top three boats, and their time was very competitive against some of the best teams there. It was our goal all season to make the semifinals, and they fell short, but we feel they peaked at the right time and they feel great about the race."

Mason also had teams compete in the Varsity Open Four, Novice Eight and Novice Four, but those groups did not advance out of their initial heats.

The Varsity Open Four of coxswain Candace Mauerhan, 4: Kate Laczynski, 3: Lesley Topping, 2: Michelle LeBlanc and 1: Christina Piazza finished its heat in 8:33.1.

"They have a very young boat, and they showed tremendous improvement from week to week, so I don't think they left with a bad taste in their mouth," said Rassam.

In novice action, the Novice Eight - coxswain Alissa Strouse, 8: Nicole Pierce, 7: Summer King, 6: Terry Seal, 5: Kelly Bryan, 4: Kathryn Rose, 3: Marissa Olesen, 2: Leanne Creger and 1: Jenny Welfare - finished fourth in 7:22.0. The Novice Four - coxswain Ashley Inks, 4: Rebecca Abarr, 3: Jessica Dillman, 2: Amber Shelffo and 1: Martha Amas - finished in 8:38.8.

"Although I'm sure the Novice Eight was disappointed with their result, they showed great improvement over the course of the year, and they should be proud of what they achieved," Rassam said. "The Novice Four did the best they could, given the extremely limited practice time they've had."

With the Dad Vail Regatta closing out the season, Rassam was able to look back on what has been an extremely productive season for the rowing team.

"Andrea [Smail, assistant coach] and I are really proud of what the program has accomplished this year. We definitely took a step in the right direction," he said. "We graduate just three of our 32 student-athletes, so the team has huge potential, and it's an exciting position to be in."

Results from Dad Vail events involving George Mason:

Women's Varsity Lightweight Four (Heat Results)
1. Carnegie Mellon: 7:51.5
2. George Mason: 8:00.5
3. Central Florida: 8:02.9
4. Villanova: 8:04.6
5. Tampa: 8:10.4
6. Duquesne: 8:21.8

Women's Varsity Lightweight Four (Finals Results)
1. Seattle Pacific: 7:50.7
2. Cal-Santa Barbara: 7:52.3
3. Carnegie Mellon: 7:53.9
4. La Salle: 7:54.9
5. Long Beach: 8:02.1
6. George Mason: 8:14.6

Women's Varsity Eight (Heat Results)
1. San Diego: 7:03.4
2. Central Florida: 7:12.4
3. Loyola: 7:19.8
4. George Mason: 7:27.6
5. Richard Stockton: 8:08.6

Women's Varsity Eight (Repechage Results)
1. Santa Clara: 6:52
2. Binghamton: 6:53.7
3. George Mason: 6:59.4
4. Creighton: 7:09.1
5. Penn State: 7:17.6

Women's Varsity Open Four (Heat Results)
1. Vermont: 7:49.0
2. Brandeis: 8:02.9
3. Robert Morris: 8:06.8
4. Marietta: 8:12.5
5. George Mason: 8:33.1

Women's Novice Eight (Heat Results)
1. Massachusetts: 6:57.4
2. Bucknell: 7:04.1
3. Temple: 7:05.2
4. George Mason: 7:22
5. Lawrence: 7:50.7

Women's Novice Four (Heat Results)
1. Toronto: 8:00.7
2. Santa Barbara: 8:26.2
3. Stony Brook: 8:26.6
4. Vanderbilt: 8:27.6
5. George Mason: 8:38.8