May 5, 2008

Occoquan, Va. - The Fordham University rowing squad had their final tune-up before the Dad Vail Championships with an appearance at the Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Crew Championships in Occoquan, Virginia, on May 4th.

The Rams were led by the gold-medal winning Division I Varsity 8 boat at the regatta, a shell which won in convincing fashion by almost ten seconds over runner-up Robert Morris. Fordham covered the course in a time of 7:38.7 with Robert Morris more than two boat lengths behind the Rams with a 7:47.3 clocking. Mary Washington took third in the race followed by Loyola, William and Mary and Sacred Heart. Fordham jumped out to a commanding lead early in the race and was never challenged, despite extremely windy conditions which resulted in a cross head wind.

Race organizers decided to combine the Junior Varsity 8 and the Lightweight 8 races at the regatta and the Fordham Junior varsity 8 was the first JV boat across the finish line in the race, placing second overall behind the Virginia Tech Lightweight 8 shell. Virginia Tech crossed the finish line in a time of 8:09.5 while the Rams were second past the line in a time of 8:08.0. However, Fordham was assessed a three second obstruction penalty for touching oars with the Duquesne Lightweight 8, which finished in a time of 8:09.7. The Mary Washington JV 8 was fourth in the race followed by the Penn State Lightweight 8 and the Sacred Heart JV 8.

The Rams also entered a Freshman 4 boat in the regatta as the Rams placed fourth overall. Fordham advanced to the finals by winning its heat, four seconds ahead of Penn State. Duquesne won the championship in a time of 9:04.9, followed by Rutgers, American, Fordham, Penn State and St. John's College.

The Rams will next compete at the Dad Vail Championships on May 9th and 10th in Philadelphia.