University of Massachusets Athletics
Rowing Heads To Rhode Island For Yankee Cup
March 24, 2011 | Rowing
March 24, 2011
AMHERST, Mass. -
| Massachusetts At The Yankee Cup | |
| Date | Saturday, March 26 at 8:00 a.m. (EST) |
| Location | Kingston, R.I. | Narrow River |
| Competing Teams | Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire & Rhode Island |
| Results | Row2K |
| Notes | Massachusetts Notes | Rhode Island Notes | Connecticut Notes |
| Social Media |  Twitter | Facebook |
| UMass Lineup |
Varsity 8+: Sam Schnoerr (coxs), Kendall Bennett, Ali DiMatteo, Katie VonZweck, Amanda Doolin, Candace Miller, Michaela Streitfield, Emily Boucher, Megan Donovan Second Varsity 8+: Carly Payne (coxs), Liz Euiler, Chelsea Wakeham, Kaitlyn MacKenzie, Gabrielle Hayward, Alexandra Daggy, Kelsey Schachter, Beth Paret, Katelyn Allocco Varsity 4+A: Em Chiu (coxs), Emily Hagan, Meredith Kearney, Adrienne Breef-Pilz, Rachel Spielberg Varsity 4+B: Emily Hajjar (coxs), Amy Nash, Angela Stigliano, Amber Henry, Kim Patrick Novice 8+: Ariana Barrenechea (coxs), Briana Wise, Melissa Donahue, Kyla Miller, Stephanie Brockert, Rebecca Adams, Hannah Monohan, Mary-Kate Cone, Nicole Juul-Hindsgaul |
Race Notes: Massachusetts At The Yankee Cup
The UMass rowing team will begin its spring regular season this Saturday at the Yankee Cup, a four-way meet featuring the Minutewomen, Connecticut, New Hampshire and Atlantic 10 rival and host school Rhode Island, on the Narrow River at 8 AM. Massachusetts, which completed a scrimmage with the Coast Guard Academy last weekend, finished second in each of its four races in 2010. Saturday will be the first of two meetings with the Rams, the second coming in mid-April at the Atlantic 10 Championships.
Checking The Forecast:
• With temperatures ranging from the high 20's to high 30's, Saturday is projected to be a cold day for rowing on the Narrow River. Winds are not expected to exceed 10 miles per hour, while the chance of precipitation is currently reading 10%.
Last Season At The Yankee Cup:
• The UMass rowing team participated in the Yankee Cup last season, placing second in all four of its races. The Minutewomen competed in the First Varsity Eight, Second Varsity Eight, Varsity Four and Novice Eight. The Novice Four, Second Varsity Four and Quad races were cancelled due to unfavorable conditions. Atlantic 10 rival Rhode Island placed first in three of the four races ahead of Massachusetts.
• With rough waters surrounding the midway mark of the course, all squads had to compensate for the cold weather and strong headwinds. The Rams completed the Varsity Eight races by winning margins of 10 seconds and 18 seconds, with UMass finishing in second ahead of New Hampshire and Connecticut. The Varsity Eight boats were steered by coxswains Samantha Schnoerr (8:04.6) and Carly Payne (8:35.1).
The 2011 UMass Minutewomen:
• This season's roster sports 20 upperclassmen, including 11 seniors and two graduate students, who hope to use past experiences to lead their younger teammates to consistent success. Seniors Liz Euiler and Samantha Schnoerr will serve as co-captains for the 2011 season. Schnoerr, a coxswain, and Euiler are two of the seven returning members from last season's Varsity Eight boat.
• The UMass Second Varsity Eight also returns several key members from last season's lineup, including seniors Carly Payne (coxswain) and Kelsey Schachter. Joining them is junior Emily Boucher, who raced at the 2010 Under 23 World Championships in the Lightweight Single Sculls over the summer, and Megan Donovan, a 2010 Atlantic 10 All-Conference First Team member.
• Joining the veterans are 20 freshman rowers, who will compete in various novice boats throughout the season.
The Spring Schedule:
• UMass will begin the 2011 spring season with a scrimmage against the Coast Guard Academy on March 19 at the Connecticut River. From there, the Minutewomen will head to Kingston, R.I. for the Yankee Cup, a regatta that the team finished second at last season. A new addition to the season slate, Colgate, will travel to Amherst for an April 2 date with the Minutewomen at 8 AM, again on the Connecticut River.
• Massachusetts will then begin a string of three straight races in Camden, N.J., beginning with the two-day Knecht Cup, where junior Emily Boucher won the singles event last season. UMass will remain in New Jersey for the 16th Annual Atlantic 10 Championships on April 16 on the Cooper River. The 2011 conference championships will be the second season that only the Varsity Eight, Second Varsity Eight and Varsity Four boat finishes will count towards the final team standings.
• After competing with Holy Cross in Worcester on April 23, the Massachusetts Lightweight Eight will look to defend their 2010 first place finishes at the Dad Vail Regatta (May 13-14) and USRowing Collegiate Championships (May 23-24).
UMass Represented At C.R.A.S.H.-B. Sprints:
• Eight members of the UMass women's rowing team competed in the C.R.A.S.H.-B. Sprints on Sunday at Agganis Arena in Boston. Five Minutewomen were entered in the Women's Openweight at the World Indoor Rowing Championships while three Massachusetts rowers, each of whom raced as part of the Lightweight 8+ that took home the gold at last season's Dad Vail Regatta, competed in the Women's Lightweight Open. Megan Donovan led all UMass rowers with a ninth place finish in lightweight competition, while Adrienne Breef-Pilz placed 31st amongst Women's Open competitors.
• To read the full release and view results from UMass' performance at the C.R.A.S.H.-B's, click here.
UMass Rowing Holds Boat Dedication:
• During halftime of the men's basketball game against Maine on December 8, the UMass Rowing team held a boat dedication ceremony at half-court, honoring former student-athletes Michelle Whitcomb-Borkhuis and Wendy Wilbur. During their time at UMass, both women were instrumental in providing the building blocks for what makes the Massachusetts Rowing team successful today. The Minutewomen also dedicated a boat to current UMass Hall of Famer Sarah Jones earlier this year.
• Michelle Whitcomb was a seven-time member of United States Women's National Rowing Team from 1997 to 2003. She was a ten-time U.S. National Champion and won the Canadian Henley in 1996 as well as the prestigious Head of the Charles in 1997. Michelle demonstrated excellent versatility, competing at National levels as both an openweight, a lightweight, a sweep rower and a sculler.
• Wendy Wilbur was a part of the UMass 1997 Women's Eight that placed a historic second at the Inaugural NCAA Women's Rowing Championship. That year she was also named a USRowing Academic All American.
• To read the full release on the UMass Rowing Boat Dedication, click here.
Sarah Jones Inducted Into UMass Hall Of Fame:
• The first-ever UMass Hall of Famer from the rowing program, Sarah Jones has had a decorated career in college and with the United States National Team and Olympic Team. With the Minutewomen, she was an NCAA Silver Medalist in 1997 in the Varsity 8+. She was a two-time Atlantic 10 Champion in both 1996 and 1997. Jones was a member of the first collegiate team to win the women's 8+ at the Head of the Schuylkill in 1996 and helped UMass to the Intercollegiate Rowing Association Regatta Silver Medal in 1996 with the Varsity 8+.
• Jones was a member of United States National Team from 1997-2003. She competed for Team USA at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia and 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece, helping the stars and stripes to a sixth-place finish. She medaled six times in the World Championships. Jones was a two-time World Championship gold medalist in both 1999 and 2000. She was also a silver medalist at the Head of the Charles in 1998 and 1999 and took bronze in 1997.
Boucher Goes Global:
• Emily Boucher (Lee, N.H.) represented the United States at the 2010 World Rowing Under 23 Championships in Brest, Belarus. Boucher raced in the Lightweight Single Sculls event, where she earned a spot after capturing gold by nearly seven seconds in the same event at the U23 Trials in late June.
• Boucher got off to a tough start on the first day of competition, finishing fifth in her preliminary heat with a time of 8:08.51. She put up a fight through the first half of the course before falling back to eventual top-finisher from Belarus.
• The UMass junior was then forced to race in the repechage where she placed third, shaving off three seconds from her previous time with a 8:05.67 to earn a spot in the semifinals.
• Boucher stayed consistent during the semifinals with a finish time of 8:05.05, but boats from Belarus and Austria set the pace in their one-two finish, pushing Boucher down to fifth place. Competition didn't get any easier in the Final B, however, as Kazakhstan and Switzerland made it a two-boat race with Boucher clocking in with a time of 9:02.90, a sixth place finish.
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