May 9, 2009

PHILADELPHIA - The Saint Joseph's women's Varsity 8 earned a bronze medal at the Dad Vail Regatta on the Schuylkill River. It marks the third medal-winning performance in four years for the Hawks in the Dad Vail Varsity 8.

SJU finished behind Grand Valley and Buffalo. The Varsity 8 battled into the headwind in the final and madesome great moves to separate from the field with Grand Valley and Buffalo. In the final 250m the Hawks made a strong push for second place but came up short.

"We are really proud of our performance today and this season. The conditions certainly didn't favor us -but they did not hurt us either -we had a great row and were able to earn something for our efforts," said coach Gerry Quinlan.

The Freshman 8 had a tremendous weekend advancing to the Grand Final. The freshmen really turned it in the season finale. The 2nd Varsity 8 and Varsity 4 did not advance from the semi-finals, as the 2nd Varsity 8 just missed qualifying for the final. "The 1500 time trial certainly did not play to our strengths but it was the fairest way to advance," said Quinlan. "Overall, the Dad Vail capped a tremendous record setting season for the Hawks.

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

Click here for the Action News report on the Hawks' third-place finish.