The Falcons Online -- Seattle Pacific University Athletics

SPU Varsity 8 to Get 1st Taste of NCAA Regatta
Falcons Earn At-Large Bid, Make First Appearance Friday
May 22, 2007

Short Strokes

The forecast for Oak Ridge this weekend is sunny, highs around 90 and a chance of thunderstorms...There will be a webcast of the NCAA regatta. The draw for heat and lane assignments will be Wednesday in Oak Ridge...The Division I and III championships are also being held this weekend at the Melton Lake facility, located about 30 miles west of Knoxville. The University of Tennessee is host and Lady Vols basketball coach Pat Summitt will speak at the regatta banquet...Crews will get their first glimpse of the course on Wednesday afternoon after traveling Tuesday. The state of Washington is well-represented, with Washington in the D-I, SPU and Western in the D-II and Puget Sound in D-III..It was quite possibly an SPU 4-second win over Orange Coast College Apr. 28 which proved vital. OCC then beat at-large contenders Barry (Fla.) by 10 seconds and, later, both Florida Tech and Nova (by 8 and 9 seconds)...Florida Tech made the grand final as an at-large eight a year ago. Western won both the eights and fours last year, earning the maximum possible 20 points. Barry was second in each and overall...Strand was a starting forward and led the Great Northwest Athletic Conference in field-goal percentage this past season. She was involved in NCAA postseason competition each of her four seasons, including a national championship game appearance in 2005...All eight varsity rowers are eligible to return next season...Giske, who graduated in two years (at age 19) but returned this season, will begin law school next fall after volunteering to teach at a Ukrainian orphanage this summer.

Weekly Release PDF Version

All Press Releases

Bon voyage. Winning national titles in fours and pairs was just the start. Now the stakes have been raised as Seattle Pacific University sends its women’s varsity eight to the NCAA Rowing Championships this weekend (May 25-27) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Qualifying heats are Friday morning (May 25) on Melton Lake. Saturday (May 26) will be the second chance to qualify through repechages. The petite and grand finals are Sunday (May 27).

Ahoy there. The Falcons are the wide-eyed newcomers to a rather familiar cast of Division II stalwarts. Two-time defending champion Western Washington earned an automatic berth along with Dowling (NY.) of the East Region and Nova Southeastern (Fla.) of the South. UC San Diego got the at-large team berth, and Florida Tech the other at-large eight spot. Each of the five other schools represented has sent at least one crew to the NCAA regatta before. Western has qualified all six years.

Ahead of schedule. This is only Year Two of Seattle Pacific’s new emphasis on eights. Rarely were the big boats used prior to 2006 and Coach Keith Jefferson has a very green crew: five novices and three second-year rowers. SPU had won four ECAC National Invitational titles in the varsity four between 2000-04 and a 2002 pairs at Dad Vail. Jefferson speculated that it would take 3-4 years before his program could contend for a medal in the team competition. As an at-large eight, the Falcons are ineligible for that this time around.

Formula for success. To reach Sunday’s grand final and have an opportunity to medal, Seattle Pacific can either win its opening heat Friday or finish among the top two of Saturday’s repechage. The only regatta which had qualifying heats this season was the Western Intercollegiate Championships April 28-29. The crew took third place there and again at the West Regional May 12. It was their improvement in comparison to Western Washington and UCSD, plus some favorable results out of Dad Vail involving other at-large contenders, which bolstered the case for earning a bid from the NCAA committee.

Improving all the way. There’s a difference of opinion on where Seattle Pacific will finish. Row2k.com has pegged SPU at No. 4, behind Western, Dowling and UCSD. The NCAA committee rates them sixth. What’s certain is that Jefferson’s young crew has been slowly been closing the gap on the West’s two powerhouses. The margin between the Vikings and Falcons shrunk from 30 seconds to 23 in three weeks and, since Mar. 31, by 5 seconds with the Tritons. From a year ago, when his crew failed to make the WIRA grand final to this year when they took the bronze, Jefferson estimates his crew has cut 20 seconds.

Final adjustments. The Falcons’ lineup has been settled in the stern for quite awhile, but the bow underwent some adjustments up until its third-place showing at the regional. Rachel Savage (So., Encinitas, Ca/San Dieguito) has been the stroke for all eight regattas, with Katie Wolff (Jr., Bridgewater, Vt./Mid Vermont Christian) and Amy Burns (So., Palm Springs, Ca./Desert Chapel) just behind her. The major change came in mid-April when, a month after joining from a season of basketball, Rachel Strand (Sr., Shoreline, Wa./King’s) won the No. 5 seat. Katie Wilner (So., Everett, Wa./Everett) regained her place just prior to the regional, slotting into the bow. All-WIRA and all-conference selection Megan Giske (Sr., Gig Harbor, Wa./Gig Harbor) is the coxswain.

Crew lineup this week Women’s Varsity 8: Stroke-Rachel Savage (So., Encinitas, Ca/San Dieguito), 7-Katie Wolff (Jr., Bridgewater, Vt./Mid Vermont Christian), 6-Amy Burns (So., Palm Springs, Ca./Desert Chapel), 5-Rachel Strand (Sr., Shoreline, Wa./King's), 4-Kay Chikos (Fr., Renton, Wa./Kentridge), 3-Erin Arkin (Fr., Tacoma, Wa./Academy Northwest), 2-Melissa Blevins (Fr., Walla Walla, Wa.), bow?Katie Wilner (So., Everett, Wa./Everett), coxswain-Megan Giske (Sr., Gig Harbor, Wa./Gig Harbor). Alternates– Denise Filley (Fr., Mesa, Az./Dobson) and Heather Waggoner (Fr., Sandy, Or./Mount Si).

Regional wrap. At the May 12 regional championship in Rancho Cordova, Calif., the Falcons started strong, staying within contact of eventual winner Western Washington and bow-to-bow with runner-up UC San Diego for the first thousand meters. In the sprint, the Vikings pulled away to win with open water on UCSD.
Women's Varsity 8 Div. II Grand Final: 1-Western Washington 7:10.9, 2-UC San Diego 7:19.6, 3-Seattle Pacific 7:33.8, 4-Humboldt State 7:41.1

SPU Coaches. Keith Jefferson has steered Seattle Pacific University into uncharted waters in national prominence during his 16-year tenure as head coach. In the past eight years alone, Jefferson’s Falcons have claimed national titles in seven events, medaled in five others and won regional crowns in 10. A past oarsman, alumnus and assistant coach, Jefferson became the fifth head coach at Seattle Pacific University in the fall of 1990. In 2003 he took a leave of absence after being called up to active duty with the U.S. Marine Corps. A lieutenant colonel in the reserves, Jefferson was n active member of the Marines from 1983-87. Jefferson succeeded Jim Schultz as coordinator of the program after serving two seasons as an assistant. A graduate of Bothell High School, Jefferson rowed for Seattle Pacific from 1979-83. He was a member of the light four which advanced to the semifinal at the Dad Vail Regatta in Philadelphia in 1982. Keith and his wife Lori have a son, Randy, and daughter, Emma, and reside in the Greenwood neighborhood of Seattle. Jessica Pennington is in her fifth year as assistant. She was oarsman of the year and an all-region selection as a senior in 2001. Kip Wassink, who stroked a varsity four at Dad Vail in 1999, returns for his second season on the staff.

Missing links. For the latest and best information on Seattle Pacific University athletics, stay where you're at -- on The Falcons Online. For updated standings and statistics, see the Great Northwest Athletic Conference web site.