Tulsa Earns Three First-Place Marks and Medals Seven Boats in Final Day of the Head of the Oklahoma

Sunday, October 8

Oklahoma City, Okla.

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Tulsa

Head of the Oklahoma

Tulsa Earns Three First-Place Marks and Medals Seven Boats in Final Day of the Head of the Oklahoma

10/8/2017 4:40:00 PM | Rowing

The Tulsa rowing team earned three first-place marks, including top finishes in the Open 1x, Open 4+ and Open 4x, while four other boats earned medals in the final day of racing at the Head of the Oklahoma on the Oklahoma River in Oklahoma City, Okla.

"I really appreciated the effort the team put in this weekend," Head Coach Kevin Harris said. "We learned a lot, which is the point of racing in the fall. The team did what I asked them to do, which was to put together good races and have fun. We don't race a lot of these boats any other time throughout the year, but it was good to challenge the women and show them that they can row anywhere, anytime and with anyone. We have a lot of things to work on because we aren't the product we want to be, but today was a good start."

Tulsa swept the Open 1x race as Sophia Camara turned in a first-place finish in a time of 17:24.88, followed by Alessia Ruggiu in second (17:30.49) and Helen Leigh in third (17:33.44). Elisa Vandersloot also competed in the event, finishing sixth in a field of 14 boats.

"I challenged the women competing in the Single to work as a team and to push each other and they did that, finishing 1, 2, 3 and 6," Harris said.

In the Open 4+, the Hurricane boats took first and second, as Sara Fazel, Amy Pitzel, Sydney Pirkle, Madeline Oleksiak and Audrey Brown raced the 'B' boat to a top time of 15:52.27, while the TU 'A' boat was in second with a time of 16:06.73.

Tulsa also finished first and second in the Open 4x. Helen Leigh, Veronique Ulrich, Taylah Eder and Hannah Vissers crossed the finish line in a time of 14:56.89, while Camara, Julia Dunn, Ruggiu and Julia Herrel turned in a time of 15:23.92 for second place.

"Racing the Fours gave us a chance for us to get a look at some different combinations and work on our race strategy," Harris said.

Pitzel and Pirkle captured a fourth-place finish in the Open 2- with a time of 16:44.19, while Brown and Eder were ninth and Lauren Vander Hoeven and Ulrich were 10^th. The TU 'B' boat was 11^th, the 'C' boat was 15^th and the 'D' boat was 24^th in a field of 30 boats.

Open 1x (14 boats)
1. Sophia Camara – 17:24.88
2. Alessia Ruggiu – 17:30.49
3. Helen Leigh – 17:33.44
6. Elisa Vandersloot – 18:13.29

Open 1x 'A'
Helen Leigh

Open 1x 'B'
Sophia Camara

Open 1x 'C'
Elisa Vandersloot

Open 1x 'D'
Alessia Ruggiu

Open 2- (30 boats)
1. Oklahoma 'A' – 16:26.65
2. Oklahoma 'B' – 16:32.54
3. Oklahoma 'C' – 16:35.17
4. Tulsa 'E' – 16:44.19
9. Tulsa 'F' – 17:00.08
10. Tulsa 'A' – 17:09.75
11. Tulsa 'B' – 17:13.02
15. Tulsa 'C' – 17:28.46
24. Tulsa 'D' – 18:33.25

Open 2- 'A'
Lauren Vander Hoeven
Veronique Ulrich

Open 2- 'B'
Julia Dunn
Hannah Vissers

Open 2- 'C'
Madeline Oleksiak
Julia Herrel

Open 2- 'D'
Elizabeth McCabe
Ellie Russell

Open 2- 'E'
Amy Pitzel
Sydney Pirkle

Open 2- 'F'
Audrey Brown
Taylah Eder

Open 4+ (7 boats)
1. Tulsa 'B' – 15:52.27
2. Tulsa 'A' – 16:06.73
3. SMU – 16:27.90

Open 4+ 'A'
Katie Shin
Lauren Vander Hoeven
Ellie Russell
Elizabeth McCabe
Elisa Vandersloot

Open 4+ 'B'
Sara Fazel
Amy Pitzel
Sydney Pirkle
Madeline Oleksiak
Audrey Brown

Open 4x
1. Tulsa 'A' – 14:56.89
2. Tulsa 'B' – 15:23.92

Open 4x 'A'
Helen Leigh
Veronique Ulrich
Taylah Eder
Hannah Vissers

Open 4x 'B'
Sophia Camara
Julia Dunn
Alessia Ruggiu
Julia Herrel