WEST WINDSOR, N.J. - Fifteen crews earned under 23 national team berths on Thursday at the 2009 Under 23 World Championships Trials on Mercer Lake in West Windsor, N.J. The selected crews earned the right to represent the United States at the FISA World Rowing Under 23 Championships July 23-26 in Racice, Czech Republic.
In the women's double sculls, New York Rowing Association's Emily Eiffert and Cristina Felix easily won the final in an 8:08.265, crossing nearly 11 seconds ahead of Elizabeth Donald and Rebecca Donald. The duo competed at the 2008 FISA World Rowing Senior and Junior Championships, with Eiffert finishing 12th in the junior women's double sculls and Felix winning gold in the junior women's eight. The Donald sisters, rowing unaffiliated, crossed second in an 8:19.002 followed by Oklahoma City University's Kathryn Schiro and Hydi Gibson in an 8:41.150.
"We've been working a lot on length and staying relaxed, so we were really focusing on that today," said Felix. "We have the tendency to rush a little bit, but today we were able to stay calm and come back through them. We haven't been together very long in the double, but we continue to improve. Goal-wise, we want to keep improving and get to Prague at a level that is in the mix with the other crews. Of course, everyone wants to win. But, being very young, we want to set the groundwork for the next four to five years."
In the women's single sculls, Potomac Boat Club's Helen Tompkins posted an 8:31.259 for the win. Tompkins, who finished sixth in the event at the 2008 FISA World Rowing Under 23 Championships, lengthened her four-second lead at the 1,000-meter mark to cross the line 5.49 seconds ahead of Cara Linnenkohl of Lake Union Crew. A 2008 silver medalist in the junior women's single sculls at the 2008 FISA World Rowing Senior and Junior Championships, Linnenkohl clocked an 8:36.703 followed by V Sculls' Nicole Bielawski in an 8:44.337. Bielawski will represent the United States in the junior women's single sculls at the 2009 FISA World Rowing Junior Championships August 5-8 in Brive-la-Gaillarde, France.
USRowing Under 23 Selection Camp's Grace Luczak and Mary Jeghers dominated in the women's pair race, crossing 7.6 seconds ahead of Felice Mueller and Lauren Shook to win in an 8:01.859. Rowing unaffiliated, Mueller and Shook clocked an 8:09.443. Penn A.C. Rowing Association's Jenn Agee and Mairi Trimboli finished third in an 8:45.064.
Rowing unaffiliated in the men's double sculls, Sebastian Kirwan and Nate Kelly defeated Maritime Rowing Club's Henry Cole and Brendan McEwan by 2.2 seconds. Kirwan, a member of the 2006 junior national team, and Kelly won in a 7:03.425. Cole and McEwan finished second in a 7:05.489, followed by Oklahoma City University's Drew McNichols and Hugh Tullos in a 7:08.749.
In the women's four, the USRowing Under 23 Selection Camp crew of Theresa Shields, Sarah Gribler, Sarah Selenka and Laura Nicholson won in a 7:34.285. Shields was a member of the women's eight that won gold at the 2008 FISA World Rowing Under 23 Championships, while Gribler was a two-time junior national team member in 2005 and 2006. Penn A.C. Rowing Association's Grace Wolff, Hilary Cumbest, Leah Kelly and Kelly Murphy crossed second in a 7:42.554.
In the men's four with coxswain, the Cayuga Lake Training Center (N.Y.) crew of coxswain Steve Matyas, Michael Rossidis, Baustian Drew, Evan Cassidy and Christopher Frendl defeated Penn A.C. for the win. Cayuga Lake gained a five-second lead by the 1,000-meter mark and held it through the second half of the course to cross first in a 6:50.193. Matyas, a member of the 2007 junior team, competed in the event at the 2007 FISA World Rowing Junior Championships. Penn A.C.'s crew of coxswain Felipe Luisi, Aaron Frankel, Josh Nowak, Martin Reschke and Derek Johnson finished second in a 6:55.804.
USRowing Development Camp - Wisconsin Women's Dani Dewitt held off NYRA's Chelsea Smith to win the lightweight women's single sculls by 3.5 seconds. Dewitt crossed in a 9:20.729, followed by Smith in a 9:24.205. USRowing Development Camp - Wisconsin Women's Taylor Fries crossed the 1,000-meter mark in second place, just 0.001 seconds behind Dewitt, but fell back in the second half to finish third in a 9:26.259. Vesper Boat Club's Whitney Engle crossed the line fourth in a 9:27.382.
In the lightweight women's double, Vesper's Madeline Davis and Lindsay McAlpine rowed even with Durham Boat Club's Emily Boucher and Liz Euiler through the 1,000-meter mark. Davis and McAlpine pulled away in the final stretch to win by 2.85 seconds, crossing first in an 8:23.451. Boucher and Eulier clocked an 8:26.216 for second place.
Maritime Rowing Club's lightweight men's double sculls duo of Andrew Campbell, Alec Buckenheimer came from behind to defeat Potomac Boat Club's James Stewart and Tom Nesel in one of the tightest races of the day. Stewart and Nesel had a 1.1 second lead at the halfway point, but couldn't hold off Maritime's charge in the second 1,000 meters. Campbell and Buckenheimer won by 1.3 seconds in a 7:27.345, with Potomac second in a 7:28.634.
In the lightweight men's pair, Lake Union Crew's Thomas Davidson and Nick Donald led the race from wire to wire, crossing 5.3 seconds ahead of Riverside Boat Club's Nathaniel Kielt and Anders Corbett for the win. Davidson and Donald clocked a 7:39.386. Kielt, who competed in the event at the 2008 FISA World Rowing Under 23 Championships, and Corbett crossed second in a 7:44.646 followed by Vesper's Sean Gibel and Sean Rader in third.
In the lightweight women's quadruple sculls, GMS Rowing Center's Victoria Burke, Katherine Robinson, Summers Nelson and Devery Karz rowed uncontested to earn a spot on the under 23 national team. The crew clocked a 7:23.535 in the final. GMS/Malta Boat Club/New York Athletic Club's lightweight men's quadruple sculls crew also rowed uncontested. The crew of Robert Duff, Mike Nucci, Peter Orlando and Will Kelly crossed the line in a 6:44.960.
After posting the fastest time in yesterday's heats of the men's single sculls, Detroit Boat Club's Stephen Lambers dominated in the final to win by nearly 17 seconds. Vesper's Ian Silviera, a member of the 2008 men's junior eight that won gold at the world championships, trailed Lambers by just 0.3 seconds at the 1,000-meter mark. Lambers continued to pull away in the second half of the race, clocking a 7:54.727 for the win. Silviera crossed second in an 8:11.419, followed by Craftsbury Sculling Center's John Hood in an 8:13.500.
GMS's Mike Orzolek easily won the lightweight men's single, clocking an 8:00.650. Orzolek won the second of two heats Tuesday en route to the final. Vesper's Steven Cutler crossed second in an 8:10.215, followed by teammate Peter Smith in an 8:15.291. GMS's Dan Kenefick finished fourth in an 8:35.618.
In the men's pair, Craftsbury Sculling Center's Eli Roxby and John Graves came from behind to defeat Penn A.C.'s David Weir and Taylor Brown by nearly six seconds. Roxby and Graves clocked a 7:29.472, followed by Weir and Brown in a 7:35.350. Penn A.C. teammates Vincent Lepeltier and Steffen Haider finished third in a 7:42.886.
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