Men's Varsity 4 takes gold medal
Special to The Observer
Competing in the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championships at Oak Ridge, Tenn., the men's rowing club distinguished itself in all events.
The Varsity 4 defeated 23 other universities in capturing the gold medal with a time of 6:57. Georgia Tech, UTC, Virginia, Marquette and Texas followed in that order. The Irish Novice 8 advanced to the semifinals where they won a lane to compete in the Petite finals.
In the finals, the Irish placed fourth with a time of 6:40, less than three seconds behind champion Emery's 6:37.2. The JV 4 boat advanced to the final heat, where they won the Bronze medal, finishing behind Virginia and UTC, and ahead of Purdue and Clemson.
This weekend, the Irish will compete in the Midwestern Championships at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Ultimate
The men's and women's teams both advanced to the Midwest Regionals when the men captured the Sectional Championships and the women placed second. The men swept the field, defeating U. Chicago, 13-0; Ruso Hulman, 13-1; Northwestern, 13-8 and Ball State, 13-9 to advance to the quarterfinals. In the quarters, Brian Richardson's 70 yard scoring huck to Frank Helgesen highlighted a 13-8 victory over Northern Illinois. Chris Fuch and Mike Shiel performed notably throughout the tournament, including the repeat 13-8 win over Northwestern in the semifinals. In the finals, the Irish toppled top seed Illinois, 15-6, behind the standout play of David Pickett.
The women opened with their first shutout of the season, 13-0 over Bradley, as Rachel Kelly and Angela Bauer set the tone for the weekend with great play. After dropping the second game to Northwestern 12-8, the Irish rebounded with a 9-4 win over rival Purdue, as Lois Donovan, Ali Hedrick and Monica Kercshner starred in the win.
After defeating Chicago 13-4, the club fell to eventual champion Illinois. Needing a win in its final contest, the Irish rode the zone defense of Laura Banasynchsky, Mia Steffen and Jenny Wellman to defeat Indiana 10-9.
Women's Water Polo
Stepping up in play against Big 10 competition, including some varsity programs, the club not only distinguished itself with competitive play throughout the weekend, but scored upset victories over both Northwestern and Illinois in the Midwest Regionals. The Irish lost the opening two rounds to eventual champion Indiana, 19-7; and third place finisher Michigan State, 7-2.
Undaunted, the Irish bounced back with a dramatic 11-8 overtime win over Illinois, and edged Northwestern, 5-4 to place fifth in the tournament, ahead of Ohio State and Wisconsin. Val Simone garnered honorable mention honors in the all-tournament team.
Cycling
Pat Cloud and Jeff Smoke of the Cycling Club distinguished themselves at the time trials held in Indianapolis at DePauw University. The two Irish racers finished among the top 40, 11th and 16th respectively. This weekend, Indiana will host the Regional Road Race Championships.
Bowling
The Bowling Club came up one individual win short of qualifying for the finals at the ACU-I National Championships in Omaha, Neb., this weekend. Led by Kevin Gertken's 611 series and Darren Kraft's 593, the Irish finished 16th in a very strong field.
Team highlights included stunning victories over Lindenwood and Kansas, two of the top four seeded teams. In each victory an Irish kegler rolled a 267 game, which proved to be the club's best showing of the year.
All Sports Stories for Tuesday, April 18, 2000
