Men's crew competes in opener

By Andrew Neils

The men's crew team has been waiting for this moment all winter long. Last weekend, the team traveled to Philadelphia to compete at the Murphy Cup, and cash in on all the hard work the Bison have done this winter.

The spring season is highly anticipated, and crew teams like to break out their big guns to show off their power and skill. The season is also known as the sprint season because the teams compete in two-kilometer races, while in the fall the races were generally five kilometers.

The Bison competed in the varsity and second varsity eight-man events at the cup.

The varsity squad finished third in its heat, just missing a spot in the finals. Overall, the crew finished eighth out of 16 teams, including overall winner Temple and Patriot League rivals Lehigh, Lafayette, Army and American. The squad finished well in front of Skidmore, Miami of Ohio and The College of New Jersey.

The varsity was coxed by Julia Miller '08, with Ben Finio '07 at stroke. Behind him were Brent Butler '06, Garrett Samuels '06, David Wingate '08, Nate Humberston '08, Kaikea Goo '07, Jon Bloom '06 and Frank Rosenthal '07.

"As the first race of the season, the Murphy Cup was a great measure of how far we have come and what we need to improve on," Rosenthal said. "It was also very exciting as it marked the beginning of the sprint season, which I have been looking forward to all winter."

The other eight-man boat raced in the second varsity event, which included Patriot League rival Army. The crew finished third in its heat behind both Temple and Army, but its time of six minutes and 40 seconds was fast enough to place the squad in the finals.

The finals were held later that same day, and the Orange and Blue came in fifth overall, beating LaSalle by two seconds in the final stretch.

First-year Head Coach Paul Bugenhagen was pleased that the team was able to use its toughness in the qualifying heat to make the final. While well off the mark of winning, the Bison put themselves in the race and hopefully will continue to mature and create opportunities for themselves as they did this weekend.

The lineup consisted of coxswain Brett Eaton '06 and stroke Victor Ceci '09, followed by Dan Lavy '07, Cody Crooke '07, Robert Blakemore '08, Ethan Cahn '07, Brian Mulligan '08, John Conte '09 and Dave Boruta '07 at bow.

Racing twice during the day is not just physically challenging, but it is also mentally challenging.

"To be back racing is just a huge adrenaline rush; you're just laying everything out there trying to break the other guy," Blakemore said. "You can't really describe it. From shore it looks kind of peaceful as the boats go by; inside of one you're just trying to drop the hammer, try and push the boat a litter faster on this stroke, and on the next, and the next. Basically you just pour yourself into getting the bowball across the finish line."

The Murphy Cup was a test that showed the team where its stands, and how the Bison hope to achieve their ambitions.

"This race provided us with a firm sense of our ability relative to the crews we intend to compete with at our championship regatta in May," Bugenhagen said. "Our immediate goals will be to reduce the impact our flaws had on our racing performance at the Murphy Cup and use that development to create more complete and competitive crews for the races ahead."

The Bison are looking to gather momentum, with their eyes set on placing well in the championship regatta at the end of the season.

"Long term, our aim is to finish in the top ten at the Dad Vail regatta in May. We have just over a month to practice, race and scrimmage to achieve that goal and we are well on our way," Rosenthal said.

The Bison will be back in action tomorrow, dueling with Penn State on their home course approximately 15 miles from campus. The race will be held on the Susquehanna River, and spectators can view the race from the Bucknell Boathouse, located on Route 11 across from Tedd's Landing.