TRAKAI, Lithuania - The men's four with coxswain won its heat, while two other U.S. crews advanced to the semifinals on the first day of racing at the 2012 World Rowing Under 23 Championships in Trakai, Lithuania.
The men's four with coxswain of Seamus Labrum (Cape May Court House, N.J.), Max Mannisto (Belmont, Calif.), Patrick Marre (Portland, Ore.), Garrett Rinden (Costa Mesa, Calif.) and Alex Kornick (Akron, Ohio) passed New Zealand in the final strokes to win the first heat by 0.24 seconds in a 6:15.29. The crew sat in second place, less than one second behind New Zealand, for the majority of the race before edging ahead at the line. Both crews advanced to Saturday's final, while France, which finished only 0.72 seconds behind the U.S., was forced to go to the repechage. Serbia and Australia took the top two spots in the second heat to also advance to the final.
Justin Jones (Bellmawr, N.J.), Will Gillis (Seattle, Wash.), Alex Karwoski (Hollis, N.H.) and Ted Baumgardner (Longport, N.J.) finished second in their heat of the men's four to advance directly to Friday's semifinals. The crew got off to a strong start and held a 2.06-second lead on Great Britain at the midway point of the race. The U.S. continued to lead as the crews headed into the final 500 meters, but the British boat put on a strong charge and was able to cross the line less than a second ahead of the Americans. Great Britain finished with a time of 6:06.10, with the U.S. clocking a 6:07.04.
In the lightweight men's pair, Chandler Mahaney (Greenwich, Conn.) and Jack Devlin (Arlington, Va.) took third, moving on to Friday's semifinals. The duo sat in third position through the 1,000-meter mark before dropping behind Lithuania into fourth. However, Lithuania was relegated to the repechage for its boat being under weight. Leading from the start, Germany won the race in a 7:03.32, followed by the Czech Republic. The U.S. finished with a time of 7:20.35.
The women's four of Cathy McDermott (Cazenovia, N.Y.), Molly Bruggeman (Dayton, Ohio), Liz England (Richlands, Va.) and Daphne Martschenko (Fairfax, Va.) finished third in its heat and will now race in the repechage on Thursday. With two to advance to the final, the crew got off the line in third position and held that spot the entire way down the course, finishing with a time of 6:57.18. Russia took a two-second lead in the first 500 meters and pulled away from the field to win the race in a 6:49.87. Romania took second, also advancing to the final. Canada and Australia took the top two spots in the second head to earn automatic berths in the final.
Rosie Popa (Melbourne, Australia) and Anna Kaminski (Seattle, Wash.) finished third in their heat of the women's pair and will now race in Thursday's repechages. The duo got off the line in third position before dropping to fourth in the second 500 meters. However, Popa and Kaminski rallied to pass Latvia in the final quarter of the race. New Zealand rocketed off the start, building more than a five-second lead in the first 500 meters. The duo of Kelsey Bevan and Kayla Pratt continued to extend its lead to more than 10 seconds at the halfway point of the race before cruising to a 17.90-second victory. Norway finished second, taking the other spot in the final. Great Britain and Germany advanced from the other heat.
The lightweight men's quadruple sculls crew of Roger Stone (New Canaan, Conn.), John O'Mara (Philadelphia, Pa.), Dylan Gould (Riverhead, N.Y.) and John Redos (Mount Bethel, Pa.) finished fifth its heat and will now race in a repechage on Thursday. The crew sat in fifth position the entire way down the course. With only one crew automatically advancing to the final, Italy passed Germany in the final 500 meters to win the race by 0.39 seconds in a 6:00.36. The U.S. finished with a time of 6:20.91.
In the women's quadruple sculls, the crew of Britta Syverson (Minneapolis, Minn.), Samantha Warren (Davis, Calif.), Agatha Nowinski (Sacramento, Calif.) and Martie Kuzzy (Minneapolis, Minn.) also finished fifth to move on to Thursday's repechages. Germany and Australia took control of the race early, with Germany keeping a comfortable margin the entire way down the course. The Germans finished with a time of 6:29.61, winning by 1.67 seconds. The U.S. finished in a 6:49.66.
Thirteen U.S. crews will get their regattas started on Thursday.
In the lightweight women's single sculls, Alex Morss (Concord, Mass.) will race in the first of four heats, with the winner advancing to the semifinals and the rest heading to the repechages. Morss will take on scullers from Denmark, Sweden, Estonia, France and Austria. Great Britain won the event last year, while the U.S. finished in 16th place.
Lightweight men's single sculler Jonathan Furlong (Pittstown, N.J.) will race against the Czech Republic, Germany, France, Bulgaria and The Netherlands in the second of three heats. The top two finishers from each heat advance directly to the semifinals. France won the race last year, with American Andrew Campbell bringing home the bronze medal.
Austin Hack (Old Lyme, Conn.) and Dariush Aghai (Skokie, Ill.) brought home gold in the men's eight at last year's Under 23 World Championships. This year, the U-23 veterans will test their speed in the men's pair. The duo will race against crews from France, Italy, Ukraine, Germany and Moldova in the first of three heats on Thursday. The top two finishers move directly into the semifinals. Great Britain won gold last year, with the U.S. finishing 11th.
The women's double sculls crew of Carli Goldberg (Sarasota, Fla.) and Cara Linnenkohl (Redmond, Wash.) need a top three finish in its heat to advance directly to the semifinals and avoid the repechage. The duo will face off against Latvia, Germany, Lithuania and Belarus. Germany took the top spot last year, while the U.S. finished ninth.
John Madura (West Milford, N.J.) and Matt Schanck (Brownstown, Mich.) will race in the third and final heat of the men's double sculls. They will face Greece, Korea, Slovenia, Italy and Russia, with a top two finish moving them directly into the semifinals. Latvia won the event in 2011, with the U.S. finishing in 16th place.
In the lightweight women's double sculls, Kayla McNeill (Montclair, N.J.) and Solveig Imsdahl (Scheelholz, Germany) drew Spain, Canada, The Netherlands and Great Britain. Racing in the third of three heats, the duo will need a top three finish to automatically advance to the semifinals. Greece won the race last year. The U.S. reached the final, finishing sixth.
The lightweight men's double sculls crew of Nick Trojan (Los Alamitos, Calif.) and Austin Meyer (Cohoes, N.Y.) brings experience to the team. Trojan has two national team appearances under his belt (one junior and one under 23), while Meyer is a five-time U.S. team member including a senior national team appearance in the lightweight eight last year. Trojan and Meyer will race Croatia, Greece, Norway and Algeria, with the top two going straight to the semifinals. Germany won the event last year, while the U.S. finished 21st.
With three to advance to the semifinals, the lightweight men's four of Daniel Kirrane (Rockville Centre, N.Y.), Andy Weiland (Upper Arlington, Ohio), Tyler Nase (Phoenixville, Pa.) and Philip Oertle (Zurich, Switzerland) will take on crews from Spain, France, Italy and Germany in the second of three heats. Italy won the race last year. The U.S. finished ninth.
Benjamin Dann (Pound Ridge, N.Y.), Chris Massey (Mills, Mass.), Carter Aronson (Rye, N.Y.) and Mike Donohue (Malvern, Pa.) will race in the first of four heats of the men's quadruple sculls. The quartet will take on Ukraine, Switzerland, New Zealand and Norway, with the top two crews going on to the semifinals. Ukraine won gold in 2011, while the U.S. boat, which included Donohue and Massey, finished fourth.
Men's single sculler Chris Buesser (Ridgewood, N.J.) needs to finish in the top four in his heat to advance to the quarterfinals. Buesser, who will race in the second of six heats, will take on scullers from Argentina, Lithuania, Finland and Hungary. Germany won the event last year, with the U.S. finishing in 11th place.
In the women's single sculls, Maddie Lips (Parker, Colo.) will race against scullers from Belgium, France, Denmark and Ireland in the first of four heats. A top-two finish advances Lips to the semifinals. Lithuania won the event in 2011, with the U.S. finishing 15th.
Racing in the second of two heats in the men's eight, the U.S. crew of Sam Ojserkis (Linwood, N.J.), Ian Silveira (West Bloomfield, Mich.), Tom Dethlefs (Lawrenceville, N.J.), Alex Bunkers (Maitland, Fla.), Ryan Schroeder (Thousand Oaks, Calif.), Ambrose Puttmann (Cincinnati, Ohio), Gardner Yost (Chicago, Ill.), Rob Munn (Redmond, Wash.) and Jim Voter (Ithaca, N.Y.) will begin defense of the gold medal against Lithuania, Spain, Romania and Australia. The crew, which includes three members of last year's gold-medal boat, can advance directly to the finals with a top two finish.
With only four entries, the lightweight women's quadruple sculls event will hold a race for lanes on Thursday. The U.S. boat of Samantha Brecht (Flourtown, Pa.), Sarah Giancola (Buffalo, N.Y.), Carolina Paini (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Cornelia Willis (Buffalo, N.Y.) will take on Italy, Germany and The Netherlands to determine lane assignments for the final.
Racing continues with the remaining heats on Thursday beginning at 9:30 a.m., with select repechages taking place Thursday afternoon. Friday's racing includes the remaining repechages, quarterfinals and select semifinals. Saturday's racing features finals in the women's four, men's four with coxswain, lightweight women's quad, lightweight men's pair, women's pair, lightweight men's quad, women's quad and men's four. The remaining finals take place on Sunday.