KU Finishes Third at Big 12 Rowing Championships
May 4, 2013
| Video Highlights
KANSAS CITY, Kan. – The 2013 Big 12 Rowing Championships opened with a bang for the Kansas Jayhawks and ended with Kansas finishing in third place overall in the team standings at the Big 12’s fifth rowing championship. Kansas was joined by Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas State and Big 12 newcomer, West Virginia at the regatta.
“We are excited about moving up in our placement from last year,” said KU head coach Rob Catloth. “We had some good performances with our 4V8 winning and our 2V8 getting second.”
Kansas won the first race of the day by finishing the 2,000 meter course in 6:41.72 in the Fourth Varsity Eight event. It is the second year in a row that Kansas has won a race at the Big 12 Championships.
“I just can’t believe it happened,” said KU sophomore Kristen Byrd. “It was such a close race with Texas and we just pulled it off at the end. I am just really proud of my team”
Kansas defeated conference powerhouses Texas and Oklahoma to win the title. Byrd was joined by junior Jessie Jacob and freshmen Stephanie Walker, Maija Mallula, Kelsey Dick, Jessica Scheer, Breeona Foster and Lauren Miller in the championship boat. The coxswain was freshman Mary Slattery.
“We are really excited,” said Catloth. “It was a lot of freshmen and they did a really good job in the race. We are building the program up through the bottom boats and showing competitiveness in those boats and that is what makes the top boats go faster.”
Kansas followed the win with a fourth-place finish in the Third Varsity Four and a third-place finish in the Second Varsity Four. Texas won each of those races. Oklahoma got it’s first win of the day by winning the First Varsity Four while KU finished fourth.
KU defeated Texas again in the Second Varsity Eight. Kansas finished second with a time of 6:41.14. The Jayhawks finished behind Oklahoma by less than six seconds. Rowing in the Second Varsity Eight boat for KU were seniors Cheyenne Verdoorn and Danielle Adam, junior Amanda Lewis, and sophomores Julia Alvey, Claudijah Lever, Erin Brogan, Jenni Hartzler and Jade Lambkins. The coxswain was junior Caty Clements.
“The 2V8 boat has only been beat by one team that is not ranked in the top 20,” said Catloth. “They are doing a really good job of attaining their goals.”
The regatta concluded with Oklahoma winning their third-consecutive race by taking the title in the First Varsity Eight. The win also clinched the team championship for the Sooners. KU had three rowers selected to the All-Big 12 teams. Juniors Alex Torquemada and Liz Scherer were named to the second team and senior Olivia Kinet was named to the first team. Kinet was also a first team selection last year.
The Jayhawks conclude their season on May 18 at the Conference USA Championships in Oak Ridge, Tenn. The winner of the Conference USA title receives an automatic berth to the NCAA Championships.
FINAL TEAM STANDINGS
Oklahoma 133
Texas 117
Kansas 81
West Virginia 75
Kansas State 66
Kansas Boatings
Fourth Varsity Eight
Coxswain Mary Slattery
Jessie Jacob
Kelsey Dick
Kristen Byrd
Maija Mallula
Jessica Scheer
Breeona Foster
Stephanie Walker
Lauren Miller
Third Varsity Eight
Coxswain Abbey Lozenski
Allie Griffin
Meghan Cahill
Ashlyn Midyett
Kelsie Fiss
Jackie Adamle
Clarissa Holt Bates
Tess Scott
Cara Murray
Second Varsity Four
Coxswain Sarah Lasini
Andrea Joyce
Angie Flores
Emily Starr
Carley Iverson
First Varsity Four
Coxswain Katy MacCormack
Eileen Gallagher
Emma Umbarger
Jessica Miller
Kaylee Sextro
Second Varsity Eight
Coxswain Caty Clements
Julia Alvey
Cheyenne Verdoorn
Claudi Lever
Erin Brogan
Jennifer Hartzler
Amanda Lewis
Danielle Adam
Jade Lambkins
First Varsity Eight
Coxswain Olivia Catloth
Caity Decker
Olivia Kinet
Alex Torquemada
Liz Scherer
Maggie Duncan
Brooke Thuston
Katy Evans
Laura Benz
