University of Oklahoma Athletics
Sunday, March 10
Oklahoma City
All Day
University of Oklahoma

vs

OU Invitational
Rowing Sweeps Kansas in Windy OKC
March 10, 2013 | Rowing
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The Sooners hosted the fourth-annual event and welcomed Kansas, Kansas State, Minnesota, Tulsa and UCO to Oklahoma City for 49 races over two days.
The crews battled constant 20-25 mile per hour winds from the northwest that created a cross tailwind. It was a chilly day at the Exchange Boathouse that included occasional rain, but the teams made the best of it on the first weekend of the season.
OU went a perfect 6-0 against Big 12 rival Kansas in the varsity eight, second varsity eight, varsity four, second varsity four, novice eight and second novice eight. OU's novice four finished second to UCO and ahead of Kansas State.
"After a good start to the season yesterday, I was pleased with how we responded today against another good team in some rough weather," OU head coach Leeanne Crain said. "We faced some really good competition this weekend and got a chance to race in challenging conditions. All of our boats gained valuable racing experience and we were able to identify a few key areas to focus on in the next few weeks of training as we prepare for the Longhorn Invitational."
In the varsity eight, the Sooners beat the Jayhawks by 33.97 seconds, the second-largest margin of victory of the weekend. OU finished in 6:43.43, its fastest time in three races and the quickest Oklahoma boat to cross the finish line.
OU's second varsity eight defeated Kansas with a time of 7:00.58 and won by nearly 18 seconds. The Sooners finished 0.41 seconds ahead of their second-place time in Saturday's race against Minnesota.
Both the varsity four and the second varsity four capped off a perfect weekend with wins over Kansas. The varsity four finished in 7:50.50, while the second varsity four crossed the line in 8:02.64. Both crews finished a perfect 3-0 on the weekend, having defeated Tulsa and Minnesota on Saturday.
The first and second novice eights finished off the six-race sweep of Kansas with times of 7:41.29 and 7:43.69, respectively. The second novice eight also defeated KU Saturday, and both races were extremely close. OU won by 0.50 seconds in the first race, while the Sooners prevailed by just 0.45 seconds today.
In the novice four, OU, UCO and Kansas State raced for the third time this weekend. After the Sooners won yesterday's second race, UCO finished first today to claim its second win. Oklahoma finished with a time of 9:08.63.
Despite the rain, wind and cold, the Oklahoma River was lined with fans throughout the weekend, which provided for a great atmosphere for all six teams.
"I want to thank all of our fans for coming out to support us this weekend," Crain said. "They had to endure some frigid temperatures and fierce winds, but that didn't deter them. It was great to have them cheering from the shoreline and their Sooner spirit was a great inspiration to the team."
Minnesota won a total of 15 races, just one more than Oklahoma's 14 victories on the weekend. Kansas claimed seven wins, while Kansas State and Tulsa each won five times. UCO won three races.
The Sooners travel to Austin, Texas for the Longhorn Invitational on March 22-24.
For complete news and behind-the-scenes updates on the Sooners, follow them on Twitter at @SoonerRowing and Instagram at Instagram.com/OU_Rowing.
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OU Lineups |

Players Mentioned
Highlights: Big 12 Championship
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Highlights: Rowing Big 12 Championship
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Sooners Take 4th at Big 12 Championship
Saturday, May 15
My Inspiration: Cameron Guild
Wednesday, February 03