Gonzaga University
Opening Day Regatta
Men's Crew Has Strong Showing At Opening Day
5/6/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Crew
May 6, 2006
SEATTLE - Gonzaga University men's crew had a successful day Saturday morning as the Bulldogs had two boats compete at the Opening Day Regatta hosted by the University of Washington at Montlake Cut. The Bulldogs entered boats in the Varsity 4+ and Novice 8+.
In the men's Varsity 4+, Gonzaga raced a solid piece battling Washington's second Varsity 4+ entry down to the finish line. The Bulldogs were edged by one second by the Huskies B boat. GU finishing at 6:56.38 behind UW's 6:55.02. Washington's top Varsity 4+ won the race in a time of 6:48.59. Washington's third boat was fourth followed by Seattle Pacific and Lake Union Rowing.
The Bulldogs Novice 8+ boat also had a strong showing with a second place finish. The Bulldogs covered the course in a time of 6:32.95 with Washington winning the event at 6:12.53. Oregon State crossed in third, less than a second behind the Bulldogs squad. Orange Coast College was fourth at 6:37.80. Last weekend at the WIRA Championships, OCC's Novice 8+ had edged the Bulldogs by one second for the WIRA title.
"It was a great day of racing for our boats," stated head coach Dan Gehn following the races. "Our Varsity 4+ was going stroke for stroke with Washington's second boat and the Novice 8+ had a great race beating OCC by nearly five seconds after losing to them last weekend."
Gonzaga will now await word on invitations to the IRA National Championships that take place at the start of June. Heading into the Opening Day Regatta, Gehn felt that a strong showing by the Bulldogs two entries over the weekend would make a solid case for both garnering IRA bids. Gonzaga finished 7th in the nation at last year IRA's in both the Varsity 4+ and Novice 4+.
