Broncho Boat Earns National Bid

5/14/2012 9:07:00 PM

The Central Oklahoma rowing program earned its first-ever NCAA Division II national berth Monday night when the Bronchos' 8+ team received an at-large bid into the field.

Four teams were invited to the team competition and will compete in both the 4+ and 8+ races, with UCO one of two schools to earn an at-large berth for their 8+ squad. The national championships are set for May 25-27 in West Windsor, N.J.

The Bronchos were coming off the Dad Vail Regatta that was held in Philadelphia, Pa. over the weekend. It's the largest collegiate regatta in the country, attracting over 1,300 competitors from more than 60 schools.

“I am extremely proud of these young women," head coach Andrew Derrick said.   "They have done something very impressive this year and I hope they are not yet done impressing us all. We were obviously very happy to get the bid for the first time ever, but now we need to prove we belong there. We need to prove we can race with the best in Division II rowing and I am excited to see these young women rise to another challenge and race at a new level.”

DIVISION II VARSITY 8+
In the Division II Varsity 8+ the Bronchos quickly advanced out of the heats with a top-three finish. In the Grand Final, Mercyhurst and Nova Southeastern took the early lead, while the Bronchos held off Grand Valley State and Barry down the stretch to capture the bronze medal.

“We're very happy to have medaled for the first time, but to have not put down our best performance going into selection time is tough to take,” UCO coach Andrew Derrick said. “We lost ground on the two other medaling crews from SIRAs and that's not okay. The youth of the crew showed a bit and the pressure of the situation got to us. The field was deep, so we are proud of them for still finishing ahead of some very good crews.   Hopefully we learned a lot about tough racing this weekend.”

DIVISION II & III VARSITY 4
In the Division II & III, Varsity 4+ the novice crew of coxswain Amy Van Buskirk, rowers Leslie Dixon, Karen Hoke, Ariel Good and Michaela Stam continued their impressive season and advanced through the heats and semifinals to advance to the Grand Final.

In the grand final, the Bronchos were bobbled the start but still managed to stay with the lead pack of four boats and then held off two other crews to secure a fourth-place finish.

“I am extremely proud of this young crew and we have been all season,” Derrick said. “They have been together now for since right after our trip to Florida and for five true novices to do what they have done this year is probably the most impressive part of our whole season. They are fighters and have always risen to the challenges we have given them. This group makes us very optimistic about the future of the program.”

OPEN VARSITY 4+
The Varsity 4+ of coxswain Alexandra Capitol, rowers Chelsea Robinette, Kirsten Clark, Brittany Rawlins and Shayna Perry third with a time of 8:19.336, just out of a top-two finish needed to advance.

“We knew going in these athletes were going to have though toughest time advancing,” Derrick said.   “We're happy with how they conducted themselves and represent the depth of our program well. These young women need to be ready to step into the NCAA seats next year being vacated by our three seniors. Hopefully this weekend helped get them ready to do that.”

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