INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - The U.S. junior men's four with coxswain, junior women's four and junior women's eight advanced to the finals on Thursday to highlight the second day of competition at the 2005 FISA Junior World Rowing Championships. The men's four with coxswain came home with a victory, while the women's four and eight finished second in their races.
The junior men's four with coxswain of coxswain Zach Vlahos (Piedmont, Calif.), Adam Jones (Pomona, N.J.), Lucas Spielfogel (Boca Raton, Fla.), Bradley Wernst (Falls Village, Conn.) and Tyler Montgomery (Baltimore, Md.) won a tight race in the second of two repechages, or second-chance races, to advance to Sunday's final. The crew sat in second position through the 1,000-meter mark before taking the lead in the third quarter of the race. The U.S. held off a hard-charging Serbia and Montenegro to earn the victory, finishing with a time of 6:35.66. Serbia and Montenegro finished 0.3 seconds behind in a 6:35.96, followed by Russia. The U.S. and Serbia and Montenegro moved on to the final where they will face heat winners Italy and Germany, as well as Poland and Canada who advanced from the first repechage.
The junior women's eight of coxswain Ariel Frost (Oakland, Calif.), Jenny Cromwell (Bellevue, Wash.), Alie Fishman (Dallas, Texas), Ellie Logan (Boothbay Harbor, Maine), Lauren Hofmayer (Orinda, Calif.), Erin Knox (Snohomish, Wash.), Elizabeth Demers (Andover, Mass.), Annie Gayman (Seattle, Wash.) and Caitlin McGrath (Westport, Conn.) had no trouble advancing into Sunday's final from its repechage. With the top four finishers moving on to the final, the U.S. boat finished comfortably in second place. The crew held the second spot all the way down the course, finishing with a time of 6:46.94. Great Britain led the entire race, stroking a 6:44.03. Russia and the Czech Republic finished third and fourth, respectively. The four crews join heat winners Romania and Germany in the final.
The junior women's four of Jordan Peek (Jacksonville, Fla.), Adrienne Mecham (Lake Stevens, Wash.), Sara Gribler (Marysville, Wash.) and Lori Gordon (Winchester, Mass.) also finished second in its repechage and advanced to Sunday's final. With only the top two crews advancing, the U.S. boat got caught in a tight battle between Poland, the Ukraine, and Romania for the qualifying positions. The Ukraine led the race for the first 1,000 meters, while Poland and the U.S. battled for second position. Poland made a strong move as it crossed the 1,000-meter mark and overtook the lead heading into the final 500 meters. Meanwhile, the U.S. had dropped from second to third as the crews entered the final quarter of the race. But, the U.S. passed the Ukraine down the stretch to earn a spot in the final. Poland won the race with a time of 7:00.49, followed by the U.S. in 7:01.22, the Ukraine in 7:02.75 and Romania in 7:03.22. The top two finishers joined heat winners Italy and Belarus, as well as Germany and New Zealand from the other repechage, in Sunday's final.
Men's single sculler Sean Medcalf (Philadelphia, Pa.) finished third in his repechage and will now race Saturday in the D/E semifinals, which determines the crews that will advance to the D finals for places 19-24 and the E finals for places 25-30. Medcalf sat in second position through the 1,500-meter mark but could not hold off the challenge from Bulgaria's Ivan Ladzhov, dropping to third and out of a semifinal qualifying position. Medcalf stroked a 7:22.92 to Ladzhov's 7:21.97. Denmark's Sophus Johannesen won the race with a time of 7:20.70.
Like Medcalf, the junior men's double sculls tandem of John Cerrone (Philadelphia, Pa.) and Justin Ochal (Philadelphia, Pa.) finished third in its repechage and will now race in Saturday's D/E semifinals. The crew held the second position through the first 1,000 meters behind the Czech Republic and ahead of Belgium. However, the crew from Belgium used a strong third 500 meters to overtake the U.S. boat. The Czech Republic led the race from wire-to-wire, clocking a 6:52.71. Belgium finished second in 6:53.48, followed by the U.S. in 6:55.42.
Meredith Meehan (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and Katrina Gagnon (Bettendorf, Iowa) finished fourth in their repechage of the junior women's double sculls and will race in Saturday's C/D semifinals, which will determine the crews that advance to the C final for places 13-18 and the D final for places 19-20. The crew sat in third position for the first half of the race before falling to fourth place over the last 1,000 meters. Meehan and Gagnon were never able to mount a challenge for a top two position and a spot in the A/B semifinals.
Junior women's single sculler Caroline Berson (Falls Church, Va.) finished fourth in her repechage, advancing to Sunday's C final for places 13-18. Berson sat in fourth position all the way down the course, clocking an 8:20.41. Latvia's Liene Bertasjus won the repechage in a time of 8:12.96.
Yesterday, the U.S. junior men's eight and junior women's pair advanced from the heats directly to Friday's semifinals and, therefore, did not have to race in today's repechages.
repost from late yesterday