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Vikings Rowing Team Captures Silver Medal
PHILADELPHIA, PA (May 16, 2005) - The North Park University varsity women's
rowing team continued its remarkable sprint to the top of the collegiate
rowing world by capturing the silver medal in the four-person race at
the Dad Vail Regatta on Saturday.
"It was really tremendous," said Tim Grant, the team's coach. "For many
schools, this is considered a national championship." The team includes
Annika Safstrom, Allie Koubsky, Cori Bowman, Becca Bowman and coxswain
Errikka Treatch.
The regatta is a national event that this year attracted 116 colleges
and universities and some 3,300 rowers in 19 categories. The Vikings
were among 52 teams competing in their event. The Viking's
accomplishment is more notable because, "Many teams have been coming to
this event for years and have never won any medal," Grant observed.
The second-place finish in the prestigious event caps a successful
season in which the four-person team lost only one race. As in 2004, the
Vikings traveled to Philadelphia after winning the previous weekend at
the Mid-America Collegiate Rowing Association (MACRA) Championship in
Athens, Ohio.
In its first competitive season last year, with only one of its rowers
having had previous experience, North Park upset Purdue University at
the Dad Vail to win the four-person Novice class. Only athletes
competing for their first time in college participate in the Novice
class. Competition was tougher this year because the women faced teams
with much more experience - some of the competing crews have been racing
together for four years.
The Vikings finished 7.6 seconds behind Bowdoin of Brunswick, Maine,
which won the event two years ago, and 3.09 seconds ahead of Union of
Schenectady, New York. Bowdoin has a long history of rowing excellence,
including a victory at the Dad Vail in 2003.
Grant credits the Vikings' strength and ability to sprint at the end as
a key to the team's success Saturday. Bowdoin pulled away at the halfway
point of the race, leaving a tight race for second place. The lead
changed several times between Union and North Park.
With 600 meters to go, the announcer declared that either of the teams
could take second place. "I couldn't watch," Grant said, adding that he
had even turned away for a moment. But the sight he saw was well worth
suffering some anxiety. "When teams from across the country come by to
congratulate you, you begin to realize you're pretty special," Grant said.
Having fans at the race this year also helped the team, Grant said. Last
year, he was a lone voice in the stands. This year, there were 24 other
people shouting their encouragement. "That makes a huge difference when
you hear people cheering you on," Grant said. Following their 2004
victory, the team immediately began to focus on this year's race. "We
were really working at a high level this year," Grant says. "We were
very focused."
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