Marietta's Pucella to coach Senior Heavyweight Men's Development Camp at West Side Rowing Club

June 10, 2009
MARIETTA, Ohio — Marietta College Head Men's Rowing Coach Chris Pucella has been selected by the West Side Rowing Club to head its Senior Heavyweight Men's Development Camp. The eight-week camp will take place from June 15-Aug 10 in Buffalo, N.Y.

"Coach Pucella with his experience and knowledge of the sport will have a huge influence on the development of young athletes trying to make a next step towards their dream of rowing for the US National team," said Boris Kusturic, Head Coach of Men's Rowing at West Side. "Chris will also be able to mentor assistant coaching stuff and share a wealth of knowledge he has. West Side Rowing Club is extremely happy that coach Pucella will be part of staff this summer."

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Marietta's Freshmen/Novice 8+ rows at weather-shortened ECAC Championship
Pioneers take advantage of proximity to Dad Vails to compete at another event this season

May 10, 2009
CAMDEN, N.J. — The Marietta College men's crew hoped to take advantage of its weekend location and extend the season one more day by racing two Freshmen/Novice 8+ shells at the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) National Invitational Rowing Championship Sunday (May 10) on the Cooper River. The Pioneers' F/N 8+, which won a bronze medal at the 2009 Dad Vail Championship on Saturday (May 9), managed to row a preliminary heat before officials canceled the rest of the championship due to extremely high wind conditions. [Results]

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Marietta's Freshmen/Novice 8+ wins bronze medal at Dad Vail Rowing Championship
Varsity 8+ ends its season with sixth place finish in semifinal

May 9, 2009
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — The Marietta College men's crew won a bronze medal in the Freshmen/Novice 8+ to highlight its performance at the 71st annual Dad Vail Rowing Championship Saturday (May 10) afternoon on the Schuylkill River. [Results]

Marietta’s Freshmen/Novice 8+, which featured stroke Patrick Cleveland (New Canaan, Conn.), Jim Furl (Marietta), Ethan Shoemaker (Westerville/North), Ben Charley (Pittsburgh, Pa./Winchester Thurston), Richie Fredericks (Seaville, N.J./Ocean City), Brian Timlin (Aston, Pa./Sun Valley), Drew Schulte (Parma/St. Ignatius), bow Matt Newsome (Petersburg, N.J./Ocean City) and coxswain Sam Ellis (West Grove, Pa./St. Mark’s) began the day with a second place finish in its semifinal race.

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Marietta's Varsity and Freshmen/Novice crews advance to semifinals at Dad Vail Rowing Championship
Friday's racing changed to time trials because of weather conditions

May 8, 2009
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — The 71st annual Dad Vail Rowing Championship got underway Friday (May 8) on the Schuylkill River. Due to weather conditions, officials switched all preliminary races to 1,500-meter time trials. Marietta, one of two schools to bring boats to all 71 races, entered three boats into the championship and advanced two of the three to the semifinals. The Pioneers competed in the Freshman/Novice 8+, the Junior Varsity 8+ and the Varsity 8+, where they are five-time champions. Marietta won the inaugural race in 1934 and had victories in 1963, 1966, 1967 and 2006.

>>Results

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Marietta's Freshman/Novice 8+ finishes second at SIRAs
Varsity 8+ and Junior Varsity 8+ compete in Petite Finals

April 19, 2009
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. — The Freshman/Novice 8+ won a silver medal to highlight the Marietta College crew’s performance at the 42nd annual Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association (SIRA) Championship Saturday (April 18) and Sunday (April 19) on Melton Hill Lake. The runner-up shell was one of three Pioneer boats to compete in the regatta; Marietta’s Varsity 8+ finished third and the Junior Varsity 8+ placed second in Petite Finals on Saturday. [Results]

Marietta was one of 22 schools to compete in the Freshman/Novice 8+ event, which featured heats and semifinals on Saturday and then finals on Sunday. Stroke Patrick Cleveland (New Canaan, Conn.), Jim Furl (Marietta), Ethan Shoemaker (Westerville/North), Ben Charley (Pittsburgh, Pa./Winchester Thurston), Richie Fredericks (Seaville, N.J./Ocean City), Brian Timlin (Aston, Pa./Sun Valley), Drew Schulte (Parma/St. Ignatius), bow Matt Newsome (Petersburg, N.J./Ocean City) and coxswain Sam Ellis (West Grove, Pa./St. Mark’s) began their weekend with a second place finish in the fourth heat on Friday.

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Pioneers win three races on final day of Knecht Cup
Second Freshman/Novice 8+ posts two victories

April 11, 2009
CAMDEN, N.J. — The Marietta College men’s crew wrapped up its weekend at the 2009 Knecht Cup on the Cooper River Saturday (April 11) with wins in three different events at the 50-school competition, which featured crews from all over the country. [Results]

The Pioneers had three shells advance out of Friday (April 10) afternoon’s preliminary rounds and three more boats compete in final-only events on Saturday.

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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]

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Men's crew wins four races at 15th annual Marietta Invitational
Pioneers edge out Grand Valley to take gold in Varsity 8+

April 4, 2009
MARIETTA, Ohio — The Marietta College men rowed to victory in four of its six events to highlight the Pioneer Navy’s performance at its 15th annual Marietta Invitational Saturday (April 4) on the Muskingum River. 11 crews descended on the Lindamood-Van Voorhis Boathouse for the Pioneers’ lone home regatta of the season, making it the largest event in the history of the Invitational. [Complete Results]

Head Coach Chris Pucella’s team competed in six events in front of the home crowd. Marietta earned first place finishes in the Varsity 8+, Varsity 2-, Freshman 8+ and Freshman 4+ as well as a second place finish in the Junior Varsity 8+ and a third place finish in the Varsity 4+.

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15th annual Marietta Rowing Invitational set for Saturday
Racing begins on the Muskingum River at 8 a.m.

April 2, 2009
MARIETTA, Ohio — The Marietta College men’s and women’s rowing programs will combine to host the 15th annual Marietta Invitational Saturday (April 4) on the Muskingum River. 11 crews will descend on the Lindamood-Van Voorhis Boathouse for the Pioneers’ lone home regatta of the season, making it the largest event in the history of the Invitational. [Directions to Boathouse]

Joining Marietta will be Charleston (W.Va.), Cincinnati, D’Youville (N.Y.), Grand Valley State (Mich.), Milwaukee School of Engineering (Wis.), North Carolina, North Park (Ill.), Northwestern (Ill.), Penn State (Pa.) and West Virginia.

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Marietta men's crew wins three races but Purdue retains Challenge Cup
Pioneer Navy hosts 15th annual Marietta Invitational on April 4

March 28, 2009
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — The Marietta College men’s crew won three of four races, but Purdue University retained the Challenge Cup in the 54th installment of the head-to-head rivalry between the two Dad Vail schools Saturday (March 28) afternoon on the Eagle Creek Reservoir, the site of the 1994 World Championships.

The Pioneer Navy captured first place in the Junior Varsity 8+ and both Freshmen/Novice 8+ races. The Boilermakers, however, prevented the sweep with narrow victory in the main event, the Varsity 8+, to hold on to the coveted Challenge Cup for the third straight season.

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Marietta men win five medals at Mayor's Cup
Pioneers back in action against Purdue on March 28

March 14, 2009
TAMPA, Fla. — The Marietta College men’s rowing program officially began its quest for a 2009 Dad Vail Championship on Saturday (March 14) when the Pioneer Navy earned five medals at the second annual Mayor’s Cup. The Stewards Foundation, Inc., organized the 1,500m event, which took place on the Seddon Channel. [Results]

Head Coach Chris Pucella and his squad sent six boats to the start line at the Mayor’s Cup, a Varsity 8+, Varsity 4+, Junior Varsity 4+, Junior Varsity 8+ and a pair of Freshmen 8+ shells.

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2009 Marietta College men's rowing preview
Young Pioneer Navy working toward Dad Vail Championship

By Krista Tkacz
March. 4, 2009
MARIETTA, Ohio — Building off a successful fall, the Marietta College men's rowing program expect to put together a strong lineup of boats throughout the 2009 season. Head Coach Chris Pucella and Assistant Coach Adam Cottrell are looking forward to their hopeful success on the water and, as always, they have the Dad Vail Rowing Championship on their mind.

All of the upperclassmen from the fall season have returned for the spring. The upperclassmen consist of senior Mitch Paskawych (Marietta), juniors Mike Flanagan (Absecon, N.J./Holy Spirit), Andrew Hazelrigg (Orlando, Fla./Olympia) and Steven Little (Seattle, Wash./Bishop Blanchet), as well as sophomores Daniel Bratton (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic), Gregory Clair (Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic), Michael Cute (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic), Thomas Dougherty (Lansdowne, Pa./Monsignor Bonner), Zach Mateja (King of Prussia, Pa./Upper Merion), Zach McGurk (Alexandria, Va./Bishop O'Connell) and Devin Turley (Herndon, Va./Westfield). In addition, junior John Porter (Potomac, Md./Walt Whitman), who did not row in the fall, is back with the team.

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Marietta Rowing kicks off season at Ohio Valley Indoor Rowing Championship
Turley and Chuderewicz win 2009 Hammer Awards

By Krista Tkacz
Feb. 7, 2009
MARIETTA, Ohio — The Marietta College men's and women's rowing programs kicked off their spring season on Saturday (Feb. 7) with the Ohio Valley Indoor Rowing Championship. Organized and planned by Assistant Men's Coach Adam Cottrell, it was the first official 2,000-meter erg race of the season.

The morning consisted of racing of local high school students from Marietta High School, Parkersburg South High School and Parkersburg High School. The afternoon consisted of racing at the collegiate level with Marietta College's men and women and West Virginia University's men, plus the coaches/masters race and coxswain race. The rowers were separated into categories based on their gender, their lightweight or heavyweight status and whether or not they were a freshman/novice or varsity rower.

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Marietta College set to host 16th annual Ohio Valley Indoor Rowing Championships

Jan. 14, 2009
MARIETTA, Ohio — On Feb. 7, the Marietta College men and women’s rowing programs will once again team up to host the 16th annual Ohio Valley Indoor Rowing Championships, inside the Dyson Baudo Recreation Center. The event is being in held in conjunction with the Pioneers’ Winter Weekend. [Registration (.pdf)]

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Pioneer Navy wins Braxton Cup for fifth straight year
Marietta rowing concludes fall season

Nov. 9, 2008
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — The Marietta College men's crew paid its annual tribute to the memory of a former rower by competing in the Bill Braxton Memorial Regatta Sunday (Nov. 9) afternoon on the Schuylkill River. The Pioneer Navy continued its dominance in the featured event of the regatta by winning the Bill Braxton Cup, which goes to the winner of the varsity lightweight eight title, for the fifth straight season.

The last regatta of the fall season on the Schuylkill, the Bill Braxton Memorial Regatta was founded by the Braxton family and friends to honor the memory of Bill Braxton, Jr., a popular and highly-motivated lightweight rower that attended Marietta College. In 1972, the Marietta lightweight 8+, in which Braxton rowed bow seat, finished second in the Dad Vail Regatta. The following year, with Braxton rowing seven seat, the Marietta lightweight 8+ went undefeated during the season and won the Dad Vail championship. Braxton was killed later that summer in an auto accident.

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Pioneer Navy competes at Frostbite Regatta
Marietta sends seven boats to Philadelphia race

Nov. 8, 2008
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — The Marietta College men's crew began its final weekend of the fall season by sending seven shells to compete in five different events at the Frostbite Regatta on the Schuylkill River Saturday (Nov. 8). The Pioneer Navy picked up three wins as well as a pair of both runner-up and third place finishes at the regatta.

Marietta opened the morning with a victory and a third place finish in the freshmen/novice four. It first boat, which sat stroke Ethan Shoemaker (Westerville/North), James Smith (Atlantic City, N.J./Holy Spirit), Steve Williamson (Moon Township, Pa./Central Catholic), bow Sean McKenna (Blue Bell, Pa./LaSalle) and coxswain Kendra Canter (Marietta), cruised to a nine-second win over the competition. The Pioneers crossed the line in 7:12.75. Temple (7:21.56) placed second and La Salle (7:34.61) took third. The Pioneers second shell, which featured stroke Tim Shields (Seaville, N.J./St. Augustine), John Chester (Petersburg, N.J./Ocean City), Alex Sparta (Pittsburgh, Pa./Fox Chapel Area), bow James Inks (McDonald, Pa./Seton LaSalle) and coxswain Sam Ellis (West Grove, Pa./St. Mark's), finished its race in 7:39.92 to place third behind St. Joseph's (7:20.64) and SUNY-Maritime (7:30.97).

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Marietta freshmen rowers win Rivanna Romp
Pioneers defeat nine other crews at combined Head Race

Nov. 1, 2008
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The Marietta College men's crew sent its freshmen to compete at the Rivanna Romp, hosted by the University of Virginia on Saturday (Nov. 1). The Pioneers' shells took first place and third place, respectively, to cruise to a team title over many of the top schools in the northeast.

The Rivanna Romp featured a unique design, as teams entered a pair of evenly matched boats. The overall times over a four-kilometer course were combined to determine the winning school.

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Pioneer Navy finishes second in college division at Head of the Genesee
Marietta's varsity eight places eighth overall

Oct. 12, 2008
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The Marietta College men's crew continued its 2008 fall season Sunday (Oct. 12) when the Pioneer Navy sent its varsity eight to the 20th annual Head of the Genesee Invitational Regatta at Genesee Valley Park. The event featured numerous collegiate teams from the Northeast United States and Canada.

The Head of the Genesee, formerly know as the Stonehurst Invitational, draws top competition due to its unique regatta format. In the morning, crews competed over a three-mile head race course. In the afternoon, crews were paired based on their head race results, for a 1,500-meter sprint race. A formula helped determine the final placement of each boat.

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Pioneer Navy sweeps Challenge on the Canal
Marietta wins four events at first race of the 2008 fall season

Oct. 4, 2008
GENEVA, N.Y. — The Marietta College men’s rowing team opened its 2008 fall racing season by sweeping all four of the Pioneer Navy’s events at the Challenge on the Canal, hosted by Hobart and William Smith College, on the Seneca-Cayuga Canal. The Pioneers, led by Head Coach Chris Pucella, captured first place in the varsity eight, varsity four and freshmen four races, as well as first and second place in the freshmen eight category.

Marietta’s varsity eight, which featured senior stroke Mitch Paskawych (Marietta), freshman James Smith (Atlantic City, N.J./Holy Spirit), sophomore Devin Turley (Herdon, Va./Westfield), sophomore Zach McGurk (Alexandria, Va./Bishop O'Connell), freshman Ethan Shoemaker (Westerville/North), 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), beat Rochester (N.Y.) to the line by one second in the head race event. The Pioneers finished in 14:47. Rochester came across the line in 14:48, while Hobart took third after completing the course in 14:50 and Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) placed fourth with a time of 14:51.

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Marietta men complete stage two of House of Wines Pairs Championship
Racing series will continue throughout the fall season

Sept. 27, 2008
MARIETTA, Ohio — The Marietta College men's rowing program is continuing its long-standing tradition of pair racing in 2008. The House of Wines Pairs Championship pits Pioneer rowers against each other in a series of races with points being accumulated based the pairs' finish. Results will be posted as they become available throughout the fall season.

>>Sept. 27 Results (.pdf)

Marietta men begin House of Wines Pairs Championship
Racing series will continue throughout the fall season

Sept. 20, 2008
MARIETTA, Ohio — The Marietta College men's rowing program is continuing its long-standing tradition of pair racing in 2008. The House of Wines Pairs Championship pits Pioneer rowers against each other in a series of races with points being accumulated based the pairs' finish. Results will be posted as they become available throughout the fall season.

>>Sept. 20 Results (.pdf)

Men's rowing to host informational session on Friday
Novice/Beginners encouraged to attened to find out more information about Pioneer Navy

Aug. 27, 2008
MARIETTA, Ohio — The men's rowing team is holding an informational session for any novice or beginner that is interested in being a part of this year's Pioneer Navy.

The meeting will take place on Friday (Aug. 29) at 7:30 p.m. in the Rowing Erg Room, which is on the lower level of the Recreation Center near the athletic training room.

For more information, please contact Head Coach Chris Pucella at ext. 4515 or cp001@marietta.edu.

Cottrell hired as Marietta College men’s rowing assistant
University of North Carolina graduate will coach Pioneer Navy’s freshmen

Aug. 10, 2008
MARIETTA, Ohio — Adam Cottrell, former men’s freshmen rowing coach at the University of North Carolina, has joined the Marietta College men’s rowing program. Cottrell will serve in the same capacity as freshmen coach with the Pioneer Navy.

“I am excited for Adam to join the staff,” Head Coach Chris Pucella said. “In his two years at UNC, he has shown the ability to train a novice crew that can compete at the top level of the Dad Vail Championship.”

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Bolton ’02 helps U.S. win gold medal at 2008 FISA World Rowing Championships
Men’s lightweight eight highlights final day of competition with victory

July 30, 2008
LINZ, Austria — Marietta College alum and U.S. Olympic rowing alternate Andrew Bolton '02 (Old Lyme, Conn.) helped his country win a gold medal at the 2008 FISA World Rowing Championships Sunday (July 27) in the men's lightweight eight. [World Rowing Championships web site]

Coxswain Ned DelGuercio (Media, Pa.), Matt Muffelman (Mathews, Va.), Tom Paradiso (Blue Bell, Pa.), Will Daly (Vail, Colo.), Patrick Todd (Cincinnati, Ohio), Mike Altman (Marin County, Calif.), Colin Farrell (Oaklyn, N.J.), Bolton and Simon Carcagno (Pennington, N.J.) took over first place with a charge midway through the race. The shell then held off the competition with a solid sprint to the line to win the gold. The U.S. crossed the line in 5:50.29. Germany placed second after finishing in 5:51.69, while defending World Champion The Netherlands took third with a time of 5:52.37. Italy, which finished in 5:53.46, placed fourth, Poland, which finished in 5:55.11, placed fifth and Canada, which finished in 5:56.55, placed sixth.

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Bolton ’02 named alternate on U.S. Olympic Rowing Team
Rower will also compete in 2008 World Championships

July 16, 2008
MARIETTA, Ohio — Marietta College graduate Andrew Bolton ’02 will soon have his flight booked for Beijing, China.

Bolton, a former Pioneer Navy rowing standout, recently learned of his selection as an alternate on the United State’s Olympic Rowing Team, which will compete in the 2008 Beijing Games. In addition, Bolton earned a spot on the nation’s World Championship Team for the third straight season. [Olympic site] [Link to World Championship site].

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