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take home Wooden Spoon April 25, 2004 Newport Beach, CA: USC won the Novice Eights event at the Newport Regatta held on Newport Harbor for the first time in school history on Sunday. The Varsity Eight finished in last place. Six crews entered the freshman event and in a straight final USC won in a time of 6:29.6, a boat-length ahead of second place Orange Coast College with UC Irvine, UCSD, UCLA and with UCSB rounding out the field. The regatta was a disappointment for the Trojan varsity crew. In a dramatic fall from grace after finishing the 2003 season as the top rowing program in the Southern California region, USC is now at the bottom of the varsity ranks in the area. “The wheels came off the rails,” said stroke Kevin Lorell. “The best part of the morning for us was getting out of there.” “Last season we took the approach that the best oarsmen would race in the varsity crew,” said head coach Gene Kininmonth. “This year, in order to try and build some depth, we have pretty much left the freshmen squad alone. Was it a good decision? It depends on which crew you ask.” Following the races the Crew were guests of USC alums Don and Sue Kojima for Sunday Brunch at their home in Newport Coast. “It was a sumptuous feast,” said freshman stroke Toby Jacobsen. “Everything was amazing. The Kojima’s are such wonderful supporters of our university and the Crew and I hope they know how much we truly appreciate their generosity.” Next up for the Trojan Navy is the Pacific 10 Championships to be held at Lake Natoma just outside of Sacramento on May 16. |
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