Blue Crew Earns Two Medals at ECACs; Spillane Named Coach of the Year

WORCESTER, Mass. -- The Wellesley College crew team earned two medals on a successful day of racing at the 2011 ECAC's National Invitational Collegiate Regatta. The event was held at Worcester's Lake Quinsigamond.

Wellesley took home medals in the first varsity and the third varsity finals, while all three varsity boats advanced to the grand finals. Overall, Wellesley finished third out of 22 schools in the points trophy race, racking up 61 total points. Williams took the team title with 78 points, followed by Trinity (71), while Ithaca (57) and Bates (55) rounded out the top five.

In first varsity action, the Blue took home the bronze medal, cementing their #3 national ranking. After winning their opening heat, Wellesley defeated Trinity, Ithaca and William Smith to take third place in the grand final. Williams took the title with a 6:45.17, Bates took second in 6:50.65, while Wellesley recorded a 6:52.89.

Wellesley's other medal performance came in the third varsity race. After opening with a second place finish in their heat, the Blue took second overall in the grand final. Wellesley's time of 7:23.53 sat behind only Williams at 7:20.996, while avenging an earlier loss to Trinity (7:26.53). Wellesley also defeated Bates, Ithaca and Wesleyan in the final.

In second varsity racing, the Blue had a fantastic first heat, recording a time of 6:51.56 to advance to the grand finals. Their day then ended with a sixth place finish.

In novice racing, Wellesley narrowly missed advancing to the grand finals, finishing just .029 seconds behind Mount Holyoke to take third in their heat. In the petite final, the Blue placed fourth overall, defeating Ithaca and Conn. College.

Several ECAC Awards were handed out at the event, with Blue Crew head coach, Tessa Spillane being named the 2011 ECAC Coach of the Year. Sophomore Jennifer Lamy represented the Blue on the All-ECAC Team. 

The Wellesley College crew team will now await bids to the 2011 NCAA Rowing Championships. The event will be held May 27-28 in Lake Natoma, CA. A selection show will be aired live on Tuesday at 3:00pm at NCAA.com.

Tessa Spillane	Jennifer Lamy
ECAC Coach of the Year	All-ECAC Team