WOMEN'S ROWING

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CAMDEN, NJ ­ The University at Buffalo crew team concluded its season, one of the most successful in school history, with a third-place tying finish among 10 Division I teams at the Metro Cup in Camden, NJ. The Bulls scored 55 points using the NCAA's rowing points system standards to tie West Virginia for third place. Massachusetts won the team title with 71 points while Rhode Island placed second at 58. Only the varsity races, which the Bulls reached the championship round in all three, were scored for points. The novice eight race, which UB won the consolation race, did not factor into the scoring.

Katie Johnson

UB's varsity four crew made the strongest finish among the four entries. The team consisting of bow seat Mary Conniff (Camden, NY/Camden), second seat Lauren Dunn (East Amherst, NY/Williamsville East), third seat Michelle Schwach (Buffalo, NY/Nardin Academy), stroke seat Sara Sheffer (Ft. Edward, NY/Colonie) and coxswain Katie Johnson (Kenmore, NY/Holy Angels) placed third in the Grand Finals (the championship race). The UB boat crossed the finish line in 8:11.7, just behind first-place Delaware (8:06.8) and second-place Massachusetts (8:09.0). The difference of five seconds between the first and third place finishes equates to just a little more than a boat length. Those three boats also finished well ahead of fourth-place Rhode Island, which trailed UB by eight seconds. UB turned in the third-fastest time in the qualifying heats of 8:20.6, again behind Massachusetts and Delaware.

The varsity eight boats both reached the Grand Finals, finishing fourth in their respective races. The A boat of bow seat Jessica Ecke (Ridge, NY/Longwood), second seat Tracy Clarke (Mt. Sinai, NY/Rockford (MI)), third seat Victoria Kolomiets (Guilderland, NY/Guilderland), fourth seat Kathleen Dorn (Newark, NY/Newark), fifth seat Deanna Knighton (Angola, NY/Lake Shore), sixth seat Kali Spoto (Pittsford, NY/Pittsford-Sutherland), seventh seat Tara Celestini (St. Catharines, Ontario/Sir Winston Churchill), stroke seat Kasey Hansen (Honeoye Falls, NY/Honeoye Falls-Lima) and coxswain Tina LaFountain (Scotia, NY/Burnt Hills) won its heat in 6:59.2. The team then went on to the championship race where it turned in a 7:05.2 to finish fourth. Massachusetts won the race in 6:52.7.

The second varsity or JV eight squad also placed fourth in the Grand Final in 7:28.62, behind Massachusetts, Delaware and West Virginia. UB's entry consisted of bow seat Stephanie Spinella (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool), second seat Karen Corey (Kingston, NY/Kingston), third seat Bonnie McVicker (Syracuse, NY/C.W. Baker), fourth seat Amy Aldridge (Penfield, NY/Penfield), fifth seat Kat Vossler (Jamestown, NY/Falconer), sixth seat Natalie Pugliese (Niagara Falls, Ontario/St. Paul's), seventh seat Marla Hardin (Riverview, MI/Riverview), stroke seat Chandra Hazey (Riverview, MI/Riverview) and coxswain Dawn Kavanaugh (Grand Island, NY/Nardin Academy).

The novice eight team was the lone entry that did not reach the Grand Final. The four slowest teams in the heats were placed in the Petite Final or consolation race, which UB won in 7:41.87 to place seventh overall. UB's entry consisted of bow seat Caitlin Logue (Buffalo, NY/Nardin Academy), second seat Katie Jones (Clarence, NY/Clarence), third seat Kristin Bender (Hamburg, NY/Frontier), fourth seat Georgia Maloney (Cortland, NY/Homer Central), fifth seat Michelle Heller (Fresh Meadows, NY/Benjamin Cardozo), sixth seat Joanne Olsen (Niskayuna, NY/Niskayuna), seventh seat Maggie Cote (Grosse Ile, MI/Grosse Ile), stroke seat Emilee Norris (Cheektowaga, NY/Cheektowaga) and coxswain Kaitlin Buccheit (Amherst, NY/Amherst).