There was great excitement along the Tonawanda Creek Saturday as the Bulls battled Eastern Michigan, Colgate and Connecticut in double dual races. The race between the Buffalo and Eastern Michigan Varsity Eight teams also marked the fifth annual race for the coveted Harvey Cup. The Bulls proved to have the magic stroke, winning 10 out of 11 races, and taking home the Harvey Cup.
Saturday's match was the third consecutive win for the Bulls' Varsity Eight team in the Harvey Cup. The team consisted of senior Sheralyn Briggs, sophomore Tara Rudkoski, junior Bridgett Yannes, sophomore Alana Sharpe, senior Brittany Aiello, junior Lauren Sexton, and sophomore Kelsey Tretter, defeating Eastern Michigan with an outstanding time of 6:33.02. The Varsity Eight also was able to row by UConn with a time of 6:33.61.
"This has become a special rivalry," said head coach Rudy Wieler. "Eastern Michigan won it the first two years, and it was pretty hard for us to swallow. Now we've won it the last three years, and as far as I'm concerned, I hope UB wins it every year from here all in."
The Bulls continued to pick up wins, as the Second Varsity Eight team raced Eastern Michigan and Connecticut. The team of seniors Margaret Devendorf, Maggie Fairgrieve, Jessica Hughes, juniors Morgan Witte, Thandiwe Price and Amanda Garbacz and sophomores Sasha Bailey, Lindsay Dicosimo and Samantha Masucci, defeated Eastern Michigan by 30 seconds, finishing with a time of 6:44.43. They also defeated UConn by 15 seconds, finishing with a time of 6:36.98.
Other wins of the day for the Bulls included the Novice Eight boat with a time of 7:04.97 over UConn, and the Varsity Four boat with 7: 36.51 over UConn. Buffalo's Lightweight Four defeated UConn's Novice Four, with a time of 7:46.72, and the Bulls' Novice Four was able to pick-up a pair of wins, defeating Eastern Michigan by 30 seconds with a time of 7:53.15, and Colgate, clocking in at 7:45.01.
The only loss recorded by Buffalo was with the Lightweight Eight, which was forced to participate against the varsity crews. The lightweights lost to UConn's second Varsity by 16 seconds, but they were able to defeat Eastern Michigan's Second Varsity by 20 seconds, clocking in at 6:59.55.
"I am extremely happy with how well they did and prepared for today," Wieler said. "I don't want to necessarily focus on one crew, because all of them did themselves well."
Saturday's races have Wieler and the team optimistic about their chances in winning the upcoming ECAC Metro Championship and the Dad Vail Regatta.
"I think we have some strong crews as we move forward to that regatta, and we are going to use this off week to prepare and sharpen some of our skills," Wieler said.
The Bulls will take a week off to rest before competing in the ECAC Metro Championships on May 3.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
