Wolverines Earn 11th Consecutive Bid to NCAA Championships
5/15/2018 5:05:00 PM | Rowing
INDIANAPOLIS -- The No. 6-ranked University of Michigan rowing team will compete in its 11th consecutive NCAA Championships weekend, the NCAA announced Tuesday (May 15). Michigan will travel south to Sarasota, Florida, to compete in the three-day event beginning Friday (May 25) and ending with championship heats on Sunday (May 27).
U-M is joined by No. 4 Ohio State, No. 8 Iowa, No. 13 Wisconsin and No. 14 Indiana among Big Ten entries at the national regatta, meaning more than half the conference will be represented in the Sunshine State later this month. Teams will compete at Nathan Benderson Park, and the event is hosted by the University of Central Florida.
Competitions will include the first varsity eight, second varsity eight and first varsity four races. The three boats from each school will compete for individual national titles while earning points toward the overall team championship.
Michigan will enter the championship as the No. 6 seed in the first varsity eight. U-M is ranked as the No. 5 seed in the second varsity eight and the No. 7 seed in the varsity four, and is the second-ranked Big Ten boat in all three races. The Wolverines earned one of 11 at-large selections to the tournament field and is one of 22 teams competing overall.
Michigan will leave for the NCAA Championships this weekend to begin training in Florida, acclimating to warmer conditions. Division I races will begin at 9 a.m. on Friday, May 25.
Today's announcement comes on the heels of a busy conference championship weekend across the country. Last Sunday (May 14), Michigan finished in second place at the 2018 Big Ten Rowing Championships, highlighted by five second-place showings (including the first and second varsity eight boats) and six of U-M's seven boats matching or outperforming their respective seeds.
Michigan has placed in the top five in nine of its 18 NCAA appearances and has placed in the top 10 a total of 15 times, including a third-place podium finish in 2017.
The Wolverines were the national runners-up in 2001 and 2012, their highest finish ever at the NCAA Regatta. In 2012, the Michigan 2V8 boat won a national championship, helping the Wolverines to second place in the team standings behind Virginia.
Tickets for the 2018 NCAA Divisions I, II and III Women's Rowing Championships are on sale to the general public and can be purchased through the host website. All races will be streamed live and free of charge on NCAA.com.
