OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – Men's crew had a strong day on the water during the opening day of the SIRA Championship Regatta at Melton Hill Lake with two boats earning a spot in Saturday's 'A' finals and the Varsity 8+ securing a place in the semifinals.
The Novice 4+ started the day off for the Panthers, posting the third-best time in time trials (6:24.949), in a field of 20, to claim a spot in Friday afternoon's semifinals. The freshmen came in just behind Texas (6:08.167), Embry-Riddle (6:10.244), and Rollins (6:11.475).
In the early afternoon, the Varsity 8+ held the 11
th fastest time out of a field of 17 crews (5:39.958) to advance to Saturday's semifinals.
In the double, the Panthers rowed to a second-place finish (6:54.486) in a field of 13 to advance to Saturday's 'A' final.
Later on in the day, the Novice 4+ competed in the first semifinal heat. The Panthers battled Texas meter for meter up until the finish line. Tech claimed the top spot in heat one, just .3 seconds ahead of Texas crossing the line in 7:26.644. The N4+ will race in the 'A' finals on Saturday.
Novice 4+
4 /
Nikolas Elwell
3 /
Apostolos Bitzilekis Apostolidis
2 /
Liam Holle
Bow /
Mitchell Davis
Coxswain /
Preston Widener
Varsity 8+
Coxswain /
Alex Doeringer-Smith
8 /
Sandro Gardella
7 /
Omer Bayram
6 /
Domantas Marocka
5 /
Thomas Matt
4 /
Hugo Ruzicka
3 /
Tristan Pavlakis
2 /
Pedro Castro
Bow / Max Robinson
Double
Stroke /
Anthony Tomic
Bow /
Hayden Linkel
UP NEXT: The Panthers are back at Melton Hill Lake for the finals tomorrow Saturday, April 19. The Varsity 8+ races in the semifinal at 8:35 a.m., the double races in the 'A' final at 9:32 a.m. and the novice 4+ races at 10:35 a.m.
For the latest news, updates and information on the Florida Tech men's rowing team, visit FloridaTechSports.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Panthers news by following Florida Tech Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
