May 9, 2009

PHILADELPHIA - The Saint Joseph's men's Lightweight 8 took third at the Dad Vail Regatta on the Schuylkill River this weekend.

Some tricky river conditions caused the organizers to change the format of the heats, with all boats racing in time trials only. The river was high and fast so lane buoys could not be installed, which also made things challenging.

In the Varsity 8, the Hawks finished behind Delaware and Georgia Tech.

SJU's Lightweight 4 finished sixth in the final. The crew had a good race in the semis and advanced to the Grand Final easily. In the Grand Final, however, their steering in the beginning of the race put them behind and they never recovered, slipping further behind as they lost touch with the other boats.

The Varsity Lightweight 8 got off the starting line very fast in its Grand Final and was leading the race. But the boat caught a crab, and that setback, coupled with deteriorating conditions due to a head wind, caused the Hawks to lose their rhythm and fall to third place.

"It was still a very good job for a boat with four freshmen in it. While overall it was a disappointing day by SJU standards, we are pleased with the lightweights' performance. We also have seven guys returning from the Varsity 8 and seven from the Lightweight 8 so we are looking forward to next season," said head coach Drew Hill.

Prior to Saturday morning's races, Saint Joseph's dedicated the Varsity 8 shell to the memory of Matt Mullin '05, who passed away a few weeks ago in a boating accident. His parents and brother were on hand to christen the boat. "It was a very emotional day for the guys and all things considered, they did a great job," said Hill.

For complete results, go to www. dadvail.org.