Marietta men's crew opens racing at Knecht Cup
Three Pioneer boats advance to Saturday finals

April 10, 2009
CAMDEN, N.J. — The Pioneer Navy sent its fleet to the annual Knecht Cup on the Cooper River Friday (April 10) afternoon for the two-day event. Marietta College entered eight boats into the 50-school competition, which features crews from all over the country.

Six Marietta shells competed on Friday. When the first day of racing concluded, the Pioneers had advanced three boats to finals on Saturday (April 11). Marietta’s Freshman/Novice 4+ and Second Varsity 8+ will compete in their event's Grand Final, while the Freshman/Novice 8+ will race in its Petite Final. In addition, the Pioneers’ Second Freshman/Novice 8+ will participate in two final-only events on Saturday. [Complete Results]

The Varsity 2- was the first shell to take the water on Friday. Sophomores Zach McGurk (Alexandria, Va./Bishop O'Connell) and Devin Turley (Herndon, Va./Westfield) took fourth place in their opening heat after crossing the line in 7:45.6. Their time, however, helped them advance to the afternoon’s second semifinal. In the semifinal, Marietta once again placed fourth, covering the course in 8:06.4. As a result, the Pioneers just missed a spot in Saturday’s final.

Marietta’s Varsity 4+, which featured senior stroke Mitch Paskawych (Marietta), sophomore Daniel Bratton (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic), junior Andrew Hazelrigg (Orlando, Fla./Olympia), junior bow Mike Flanagan (Absecon, N.J./Holy Spirit) and sophomore coxswain Thomas Dougherty (Lansdowne, Pa./Monsignor Bonner), did not advance out of its heat after finishing fifth with a time of 7:13.8.

The Pioneers’ Freshman/Novice 4+ had better luck as it won its opening heat. Stroke Ethan Shoemaker (Westerville/North), Ben Charley (Pittsburgh, Pa./Winchester Thurston), Drew Schulte (Parma/St. Ignatius), bow Matt Newsome (Petersburg, N.J./Ocean City) and coxswain Tyler Stay (Bethel Park, Pa.) completed the race in 7:08.0, which was the fastest time among the 22 entrants in the competition. Marietta advanced to the second semifinal where it placed third after crossing the line in 7:43.9. The Pioneers will compete in the Grand Final on Saturday at 8 a.m.

Marietta’s Varsity 8+, which sat stroke Turley, freshman James Smith (Atlantic City, N.J./Holy Spirit), Paskawych, McGurk, junior John Porter (Potomac, Md./Walt Whitman), Bratton, Hazelrigg (Orlando, Fla./Olympia), bow Flanagan and coxswain Dougherty, failed to advance out of its heat after taking fifth. The Pioneers crossed the line in 6:28.2.

The Pioneers’ Second Varsity 8+ will compete in Saturday’s Grand Final after taking runner-up in its opening heat. Freshman stroke Steven Williamson (Moon Township, Pa./Central Catholic), freshman Jim Furl (Marietta), junior Steven Little (Seattle, Wash./Bishop Blanchet), freshman Brian Timlin (Aston, Pa./Sun Valley), freshman Patrick Cleveland (New Canaan, Conn.), sophomore Zach Mateja (King of Prussia, Pa./Upper Merion), sophomore Gregory Clair (Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic), sophomore bow Michael Cute (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic) and freshman coxswain Kendra Canter (Marietta) rowed a time of 6:35.4. The Grand Final will take place at 11:50 a.m.

Marietta’s Freshman/Novice 8+ was next on the water. Stroke Shoemaker, Charley, Fredericks, Sean McKenna (Blue Bell, Pa./La Salle), Schulte, Newsome, Tim Shields (Seaville, N.J./St. Augustine Prep.), bow James Inks (McDonald, Pa./Seton-La Salle) and coxswain Stay placed second in their opening heat after crossing the line in 7:10.0. The Pioneers advanced to the first semifinal on Friday afternoon where they took fifth with a time of 6:44.2. That finish sends them to Saturday’s Petite Final at 10:50 a.m.

The Pioneers’ Second Freshman/Novice 8+, which features stroke Williamson, Smith, Robert Hune-Kalter (Marietta), Timlin, Cleveland, Furl, Charles Jordan (Bay Shore, N.J./St. Anthony's), bow John Chester (Petersburg, N.J./Ocean City) and coxswain Canter, will compete in a final only event on Saturday at 7:10 a.m. The shell will then compete again in a Division II/III final-only race at 10:40 a.m.

Marietta’s Second Varsity 4+, which sits stroke Little, Mateja, Clair, bow Cute and coxswain Canter, will also compete in a final only event on Saturday. That race is slated for 8:30 a.m.