April 12, 2002

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This Week
Bragging rights are on the line for the San Diego State rowing team as it squares off against in-city rivals USD and UCSD on Saturday at the San Diego City Championships, to be held at El Carmel Point on Mission Bay. The Aztecs have won the event's Patty Wyatt Cup the last six years. The women's portion on the event gets underway at 6:45 a.m. with the novice four.

The Schedule

Novice Four        6:45 a.m.
Novice Eight       7:30 a.m.
2nd Varsity Eight  7:45 a.m.
Varsity Eight      8:00 a.m.
Varsity Four       8:45 a.m.
Awards Ceremony*   9:20 a.m.
*To be held at Fiesta Island Beach.

Last Year At The City Championships
Last year, SDSU swept the competition at the city championships, winning the Patty Wyatt Cup for the sixth consecutive time. SDSU took the novice eight with a time 7:36 followed by USD (7:45.7) and the UCSD "A" (8:01.5) and "B" (9:01.1) boats. The novice four event featured only SDSU and UCSD. The Aztecs finished well ahead of the Tritons clocking in at 8:35.5. The varsity eight race saw the Aztecs earn first (6:57) and third-place (7:24.9) finishes. SDSU had a 1-2 sweep in the varsity four with its "A" boat finishing at 7:55.5 and "B" team at 8:07.3. USD came in third (8:09.8)

Looking Ahead
The team is schedule to compete at the WIRA Championships on May 4-5. The squad closes out the season on May 18-19 at the Pacific Coast Rowing Championships.

Recapping The Crew Classic
SDSU's novice eight and open eight boats each raced to a third-place finish in the petite final of their respective events on Sunday at the Crew Classic held at Crown Point on Mission Bay. The Aztecs' novice eight raced to a time of 7:12.97, coming in behind Texas (7:12.05) and Stanford (6:59.70). Action in the open eight saw SDSU clock in at 7:35.93. Stanford won that race as well with a time of 7:28.30, followed by the UC Davis alumni team (7:34.65). The Aztecs' varsity eight squad came in fifth in the petite final of the Cal Cup, with a time of 7:05.88. Loyola Marymount was the victor in that competition (6:59.70).

Aztec Coaching Staff
SDSU is led by fifth-year head coach Scott Steckel. Steckel is assisted by Kevin Waldick, who is in his fourth year with the Aztec program and first-year assistant Meredith Johnson. Steckel is a 1994 graduate of San Diego State and has coached the program since 1993 when it was a club sport. Waldick is also an SDSU alum and rowed on the school's men's club team from 1992-96. Johnson is also a graduate of SDSU and was an All-American rower for the Aztecs in 2000.