10/21/2002
BOSTON, Mass. - The Georgetown men competed in the Head of the Charles Regatta this weekend, placing two boats in the top-15 and finishing 23rd in the Championship Men's Eight against a field of 46 club, university and national crews.
The Hoya Lightweight Varsity Men?s Eight faced off against the top collegiate and club teams in the US and a few international competitors at the 2002 Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston. The Hoya Lights began the race quickly, kicking into high gear at 2:05pm, facing rough water and a strong head wind. Lead by senior stroke and national team rower Brian MacLaughlin (Cape Elizabeth, Maine/Chevrus HS; Maine), the Hoya Lights took off at rate of 34 strokes per minute, settling down to a long and powerful 31 strokes per minute cadence. Right off the bat the Hoyas gained ground on the MIT crew, overlapping decks with the crew after 1500 meters.
As the course winded, the Hoya Lights found it very difficult to pass MIT, as their coxswain stubbornly steered a course on the inside of every turn, pushing Georgetown to the outside and refusing to yield to an oncoming crew. The Hoya Light?s coxswain, junior Mina Khosravi (Gainesville, Ga./Gainsville HS; Ga.) adeptly steered clear of the MIT boat and maneuvered into the best position possible. MIT would eventually suffer a one-minute addition to their finishing time due to their violation of race protocol.
With 2000 meters to go, the Hoya Lights picked up its pace, narrowly passing MIT before the final bridge on the course. Rowing at 34 strokes per minute, the Lightweight Eight began to sprint for the finish. After a powerful twenty-stroke move, the Hoya Lights crossed the finish line exhausted from the sixteen-minute race. The Hoya Lights finished in the 12th spot overall (out of 25 crews), and seventh out of the competing U.S. national collegiate crews which included Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Dartmouth, MIT, Penn and Colombia.
The Men?s Varsity Lightweight Eight featured (from bow to stern) Coxswain Mina Khosravi (Gainesville, Ga./Gainsville HS; Ga.), senior Brian MacLaughlin (Cape Elizabeth, Maine/Chevrus HS; Maine), sophomore Cameron Booth (Buffalo, N.Y./Nichols School; N.Y.), sophomore Kyle Hatton (New Hartford, N.Y./New Hartford HS; N.Y.), senior Andrew Adler (Los Angeles, Calif./Loyola HS; Calif.), sophomore Blair Berbert (Wilmington, Del./Salesianum HS; Del.), senior Todd Johnson (Wilmington, Del./Brandywine HS; Del.), junior Cameron Smith (Austin, Texas/SF Austin HS; Texas), and sophomore James O?Gara (Falls Church, Va./McLean HS; Va.).
The Georgetown heavyweight men continued their strong fall showing Sunday at the three-mile Head of the Charles in Boston. This time-trial event is the premiere fall race in American rowing. The Hoya varsity squad competed in the Championship Eights category, which features the top universities, clubs, and national teams from around the world. Racing against a strong wind, the Hoyas finished 13th among American collegiate varsity crews, and 23rd overall.
Starting in the 23rd position, sophomore stroke man Matt Hallisey (Durham, N.H./Phillips Exeter) and seven seat Dave Fernandez (Bronx, N.Y./Fordham Prep), set a powerful rhythm that moved the Hoyas into eighth place among collegiate varsity crews, and into the 14th overall after the first mile marker. Georgetown?s quick start allowed them to quickly draw even with 87 Gold Rowing Club, who started in the 22nd position. 87 Gold, a crew comprised of the 1987 World Champion US National team, refused to concede and fought the Hoyas through the second mile. Each crew battled to move ahead even a few inches, and both were level around the hairpin turn at Weeks Bridge, pushing Georgetown to the outside and costing them valuable seconds. After Weeks, senior coxswain Alex Taft (Goshen, Ky./Kent School) called up the stroke rating and the Hoyas powered ahead, maneuvering to the inside of the next turn and seizing the advantage. From that position, the bow six of Noah Bergman (Keene, N.H./Northfield Mount Hermon), David Benchener (Newtown, Pa./ Saint Ignatius), Tyler Holt (Chicago, Ill./The Latin School), Scott Stapleton (Oakland, Ca./College Preparatory School), Eric Hilmo (Springfield, Va./Pine Forest), and Andrew Brown (Bridgewater, Mass./Thayer Academy) moved the Hoyas away in the final mile, allowing them to finish within 6.2% of the event winner US National Team?s time, improving on years past.
The Georgetown Lightweight Four began in 11th position of the staggered start at the Head of the Charles. Stroked by Tim Joyce (Bedford, N.Y./Iona Preparatory; N.Y.) with Brad Kuntschner in three-seat, John Fenwick (Washington, DC/Landon School; Md.) in two and Tony Leotti (Bound Brook, N.J./Delbarton School; N.J.) in bow, Georgetown pulled even with Rutgers (ninth position starter) and Yale (10th position starter) by the one mile marker. The crews held these positions for about 300 meters until the GU Four collided with Rutgers, leading to a complete stop under the bridge and allowing Yale to race ahead. Coxswain Louisa Seferis (Seattle, Wash./Lakeside HS; Wash.) helped to regroup the Hoyas who ultimately finshed 14th but the accident with Rutgers had a severe impact Georgetown's finishing time. The Lightweight Four finshed with a total time of 18:10.
Georgetown concludes its fall racing season on October 19th and 20th, when the Hoyas travel to the Philadelphia area to compete at the Head of the Schuykill and the Princeton Chase.
