Zags Face Tough Competition at George Washington Invitational
4/8/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Crew
April 8, 2010
ON TAP: The Gonzaga University men's rowing team, having had nearly two weeks between races, will get back into the water this weekend at the 23rd annual George Washington Invitational Regatta in Washington, D.C. on the Potomac River race course.
GEORGE WASHINGTON INVITATIONAL REGATTA: For the fourth straight year, each team will compete in three dual or tri-races - one of Friday afternoon, and two on Saturday. The 2,000-meter, buoyed course begins near the Spout Run area of the Potomac River with the finish line at Washington Harbour in Georgetown. Racing begins at 1:30 p.m. ET on Friday and resumes at 8 a.m. ET on Saturday. An awards ceremony will follow the competition Saturday at approximately 5:15 p.m. ET at Washington Harbour.
WHO WILL THE ZAGS BE RACING?: The Gonzaga University men's rowing squad, racing a Varsity 8+, Junior Varsity 8+ and Freshman 8+ boat, will race Cornell University on Friday; College of Holy Cross and the U.S. Naval Academy on Saturday morning and MIT, George Washington and Holy Cross again Saturday afternoon.
GONZAGA RACING SCHEDULE (ALL TIMES EASTERN):
Friday, April 9
Freshman 8+: Gonzaga vs. Cornell, 3:28 p.m.
Junior Varsity 8+: Gonzaga vs. Cornell, 3:50 p.m.
Varsity 8+: Gonzaga vs. Cornell, 4:18 p.m.
Saturday, April 10
Freshman 8+: Gonzaga vs. Holy Cross and Navy, 10:28 a.m.
Junior Varsity 8+: Gonzaga vs. Holy Cross and Navy, 10:50 a.m.
Varsity 8+: Gonzaga vs. Holy Cross, 11:22 a.m.
Freshman 8+: Gonzaga vs. George Washington and Holy Cross, 3:40 p.m.
Junior Varsity 8+: Gonzaga vs. George Washington and Holy Cross, 4:02 p.m.
Varsity 8+: Gonzaga vs. MIT, 4:24 p.m.
ABOUT THE BULLDOGS OPPONENTS AT GEORGE WASHINGTON INVITATIONAL: Four of the Varsity 8+ teams competing at the George Washington Invitational Regatta, including one that the Gonzaga University men's rowing team will face, are currently ranked in the USRowing Collegiate Top 20 Poll. Cornell University is ranked ninth in this week's poll, up two spots from 11th last week, while Navy is 14th, George Washington 15th and UC San Diego is tied for 20th. The Zag Varsity 8+ will face Cornell. Two other institutions are receiving votes, including MIT who GU will face on Saturday afternoon.
LAST YEAR AT GEORGE WASHINGTON INVITATIONAL: Traveling nearly 2,500 miles across the United State boded well for the Gonzaga University men's rowing teams as the Bulldogs won four races at the 2009 George Washington Invitational Regatta. The Zags Varsity 8+, who went into the weekend set to race two ranked opponents, began the regatta taking down then-No.17 Georgetown University in an extremely exciting race. The Hoyas led off from the start but the Bulldogs pressed on and sprinted the final 100-meters, gaining the lead in the last 50-meters, to claim the victory with a time of 5:39.3. Georgetown crossed the finish line just behind at 5:39.6. The Freshman 8+ won two of three races in 2009, earning a six second win over Georgetown at 5:48.0. Their other victory came over Holy Cross, dominating HC from the beginning and earning the win with a time of 5:50.1. The Zags final victory of the regatta was in the Junior Varsity 8+ race. The JV8+ defeated Holy Cross by five seconds with a time of 5:53.6.
HEAD COACH DAN GEHN'S THOUGHTS ON THE GEORGE WASHINGTON INVITATIONAL: "This upcoming weekend is always an important weekend for us. Anytime you can race on the East Coast against eastern sprint teams it is always going to be competitive. I am looking forward to seeing how we stack up against other teams in the country. We have had lineup changes in all three boats and I am also look forward to seeing how those changes translate to our boat speeds."
LINEUPS:
Varsity 8+: Sean Finerty, Andrew Krug, Connor Murphy, Neil Coppinger, Matt White, Benji Schwarz, Connor Wege, Kenny Mentele, Nick Willard.
Second Varsity 8+: Crystal Huff, Jeremy Lazzara, Frankie Russo, Julian Stephanski, David Wayne, Tyler Mendiola, Mike Gore, Will Griffith, Evan Winiger.
Freshman 8+: Taylor Mattheisen, Stuart McDonald, Bennett Schultz, Matt Tate, Dane Pavlik, Frankie Green, Erik Strand, Dan Rinker, Garrett Benson.
