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5/17/10 Rowing
Eaglets win state title
Orchard Lake St. Mary's rows past field to defend championship
Student-Athlete.com
GRAND RAPIDS -- Orchard Lake St. Mary's crew took its impressive Midwest Scholastic Rowing Championship second-place momentum to Grand Rapids on Saturday, May 15, to reign at the 2010 Michigan State Championship Regatta.
The Eaglets won both the mens and the overall titles at the regatta, beating schools from across the state. It was their 18th state rowing championship.
In the mens event, St. Mary's finished with 33 points, easily beating second-place Ann Arbor Huron's 12. Saline was third with 9, and Ann Arbor Pioneer 8.
The regatta is sponsored by the Scholastic Rowing Association of Michigan and was held on a 1,500-meter course on Grand River in Riverside Park.
St. Mary's dominated the field, pulling ahead in the men's junior 8+ to capture first place and set the tone for three more first-place finishes by the varsity 4+, junior 4+, and varsity 8+, and a second place by the lightweight 8+.
"We strive for continuous improvement throughout the season," said first-year head coach Michael Pricer. "The St. Mary's men have taken ownership of their successes and used what they've learned to help build a strong foundation."
Up next for St. Mary's is the Canadian Schoolboys Regatta, otherwise known as the Canadian National Championships, in St. Catherine's, Ontario, June 4-6.
St. Mary's was coming off a second-place finish at the prestigious Midwest Scholastic Rowing Championships on May 8-9 at Bethel, Ohio.
The Eaglets have won seven Midwest titles since 1994. They won a national championship in 1998.
In April, St. Mary's captured its 18th Hebda Memorial Challenge at the Wyandotte Boat Club, amassing the highest point total for all mens and womens teams. The Eaglet crew won five golds, a silver, and a bronze.
Until 2008, the Hebda Cup was considered the state championship regatta. The Eaglets have won all but two (2006 and 2008) Hebda Cups this century.
"The oarsmen demonstrated some real toughness, some competing in four races over less than four hours," Pricer said. "Their will and passion to win came together at the right time, and the results speak for themselves."
St. Mary's crew also won state championships in 1985, 1988, 1989, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, and 2009.
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