WOMEN'S ROWING

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CAMDEN, NJ Three of the University at Buffalo's five entries in the 2004 Knecht Cup reached final round competition, marking the first time that UB crews advanced to finals at the top-flight meet. Both of the Bulls' varsity eight entries raced in the Grand Final of their races while the varsity four earned a spot in the Petite Final, the consolation race. UB's novice entries also raced well, with the first novice eight reaching the semifinals and the second novice eight placing in the middle of the pack. Conditions on the Cooper River, outside of Philadelphia, were ideal for rowing as Saturday's preliminaries saw a warm day and a crosstail wind while Sunday's finals were marked with warmer weather and a barely noticeable crosshead breeze.

Sandra Kisil

UB's first varsity eight team earned a trip to the Grand Final, finishing fourth, as 22 boats took the water in the opening round. In UB's opening heat, the Bulls clocked a 6:57.0, second to a Georgetown lightweight crew at 6:53.0 and sixth overall. The team advanced to the Grand Final thanks to its second-place finish in the semifinal race late Saturday afternoon. UB turned in a 6:47.9 showing as Massachusetts, the eventual champion, won the race in 6:37.9. Sunday's final saw UB turn in a time of 7:18.5 for the fourth-place finish. Massachusetts (6:57.9), Boston College (7:03.4) and Fordham (7:13.4) took the top three spots. The Bulls' entry included Sandra Kisil (Hamilton, Ontario/Westdale SS) in the bow seat, Kali Spoto (Pittsford, NY/Pittsford-Sutherland) in the seventh seat, Kasey Hansen (Honeoye Falls, NY/Honeoye Falls-Lima) in the sixth seat, Deanna Knighton (Angola, NY/Lake Shore) in the fifth seat, Michelle Schwach (Buffalo, NY/Nardin Academy) in the fourth seat, Kat Vossler (Jamestown, NY/Falconer) in the third seat, Mary Conniff (Camden, NY/Camden) in the second seat, Tara Celestini (St. Catharines, Ontario/Sir Winston Churchill) in the bow seat and coxswain Katie Johnson (Kenmore, NY/Holy Angels Academy).

Jessica Ecke

The second varsity eight team also scored an unprecedented finish with its second-place showing among 18 entries. UB just missed claiming the title by three seconds. On Saturday, the Bulls clocked the fastest time among the three heats with a 7:02.2 for the 2,000-meter course, four seconds faster than any other crew. Sunday's final saw the Bulls clock in at 7:28.5 as Kansas raced to the title in 7:25.7. The UB entry consisted of Chandra Hazey (Riverview, MI/Riverview) in the stroke seat, Jessica Ecke (Ridge, NY/Longwood) in the seventh seat, Tracy Clarke (Mt. Sinai, NY/Rockford (MI)) in the sixth seat, Sara Sheffer (Ft. Edward, NY/Colonie) in the fifth seat, Amy Aldridge (Penfield, NY/Penfield) in the fourth seat, Kristin Bender (Hamburg, NY/Frontier) in the third seat, Karen Corey (Kingston, NY/Kingston) in the second seat, Stephanie Spinella (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) in the bow seat and coxswain Caitlin Logue (Buffalo, NY/Nardin Academy).

Emilee Norris

In the varsity four competition, the Bulls again earned a spot in the final round, finishing 12th overall, sixth in the Petite Final, as 20 teams entered the competition. UB opened the racing with an 8:21.5 showing in its heat, third behind Villanova (8:06.9) and Kansas' B team (8:13.8). UB's time was the 10th-fastest in the heats, enabling the team move on to the 12-squad semifinals. In their semifinal heat, the Bulls finished fifth in 8:06.0 and just five seconds out of the sixth-overall spot which would have put the team in the Grand Final. Racing in the Petite Final, the consolation race, UB turned in an 8:22.1 showing. Loyola earned the consolation title in 8:02.5. UB's boat included stroke seat Emilee Norris (Cheektowaga, NY/Cheektowaga), third seat Joanne Olsen (Niskayuna, NY/Niskayuna), second seat Jessica Barrell (Buffalo, NY/Nardin Academy), bow seat Bonnie McVicker (Syracuse, NY/C.W. Baker) and coxswain Kaitlin Buchheit (Amherst, NY/Amherst).

Abbie Potts

A disappointing semifinal finish hurt the Bulls' first novice eight entry as UB turned in a 10th-place overall finish, taking fourth in Sunday's Petite Final. The Bulls opened the heats, which consisted of 22 entries, with the fifth-fastest overall time. UB won its heat in 7:16.8 to move into the semifinal round. Things were moving along well for the Bulls in the semifinals until an equipment breakdown during the race slowed the team down. At the time of the breakdown, UB was in second place and leading a lightweight entry from Princeton. After the breakdown, the Bulls fell to fourth, finishing in 7:18.4 with Kansas (7:02.4), the Princeton lightweights (7:12.0) and Villanova (7:16.3) crossing the finish line ahead of the Bulls. The two-second differential between UB and Villanova is what put the Bulls into the Petite Final instead of the Grand Final. In the Petite Final, UB finished in 7:43.7 for fourth place in the race and 10th overall. Delaware won the consolation title in 7:36.2 with Kansas running away with the Grand Final title in 7:22.6.

"The freshman eight should have been in the final but they popped the slide," said UB head coach Rudy Wieler. "They were in second in the semifinals when it happened." UB's entry consisted of Corinne Blum (Pittsford, NY/Pittsford-Sutherland) in the stroke seat, Crysten Rushmore (Syracuse, NY/Nottingham) in the seventh seat, Andrea Lysiuk (St. Catharines, Ontario/Holy Cross SS) in the sixth seat, Marissa Ammendola (Nutley, NJ/Nutley) in the fifth seat, Elizabeth McMahon (West Seneca, NY/Nardin Academy) in the fourth seat, Lindsay Rodgers (West Seneca, NY/West Seneca West) in the third seat, Caitlin Hambridge (Amherst, NY/Holy Angels Academy) in the second seat, Ginelle Michael (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) in the bow seat and coxswain Abbie Potts (Hamburg, NY/Hamburg).

Samantha Atlas

Only seven schools fielded entries in the second novice eight competition. The Bulls finished fourth of the seven behind Boston College, Villanova and New Hampshire. The UB entry included Katy Noviello (Saratoga Springs, NY/Saratoga Springs) in the stroke seat, Samantha Atlas (Rockville Center, NY/South Side) in the seventh seat, Katherine Laub (Batavia, NY/Batavia) in the sixth seat, Jacquie Zehler (Alden, NY/Attica) in the fifth seat, Rachel Albert (St. Louis, MO/Parkway Central) in the fourth seat, Anna Cross (Selkirk, NY/Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk) in the third seat, Lindsey Yonko (Apalachin, NY/Vestal) in the second seat, Katie Barnum (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) in the bow seat and coxswain Jessica Buchheit (Amherst, NY/Amherst).

UB's crews host the inaugural Harvey Cup against Eastern Michigan on Sunday. The competition begins what is expected to be a longstanding rivalry between UB and EMU, the only two Mid-American Conference schools that sponsor varsity crew programs. Racing is slated to begin at 8:00 am at Amherst's Veterans Canal Park.