By Amanda Iannuzzi
For the Tribune-Review
Thursday, October 3,
2002
The North Allegheny Rowing
Association will once again take part in the 16th annual Head of the Ohio, the
nation's second-largest regatta.
Running 2.8 miles, the race begins
at Washington's Landing and ends just before the Allegheny and Monongahela
rivers meet to form the Ohio River at the Point. Racing against the clock, each
boat will depart separately.
Last year, the team competed in
sweep races, in which eight-member teams row the same boat. The boys team from
North Allegheny came away with three medals, the girls two.
There are 44 boys and 30 girls in
the North Allegheny Rowing Association. They have 14 boats.
This year, the focus is on sculling,
a two-man boat with two oars for each rower. Sculling boats are a little
tougher to balance than sweep boats because of their smaller size.
The Head of the Ohio marks the
beginning of the season for the Tigers. For the new girls on the team, it will
be an even bigger challenge, especially since they have only been practicing
for a few weeks.
North Allegheny also is expected
to compete in the Head of Speakmon in Columbus, Ohio; and the Head of the
Occoquan in Virginia this fall.
"It's pretty tough for new
rowers. They get nervous. It's tough to have our biggest competition first. All
of our ladies get excited to see where they stack up," said girls coach
Don Heckenstaller.
He isn't too concerned about the
inexperience.
"I think we'll do well. The
girls look good this year."
The boys team should be more
relaxed on the water.
"The boys did a big sculling
camp this summer. They got a lot of time in the water," said boys coach
Melissa Titus.
The optional camp was at Groveton
on the Ohio River in conjunction with Robert Morris University, running five
days a week for a month.
Among the 4,000 high school,
college, corporate and master level athletes from across the U.S. and Canada
are North Allegheny's perennial competitors — Steel City Rowing from Verona and
St. Catherine's from Ontario, Canada.
Along with the team competition,
several North Allegheny athletes will be competing as singles. For the girls
team, seniors Jen Landis and Ellen Maskrey will take to the water on their own.
Landis was part of a double team
that came in second in the country last year, but her partner graduated.
Maskrey may be the one to fill the role in future doubles competition.
Junior Ryan Moravec will be
competing in the men's single and juniors Michael Band and Jordan Ellis in
men's double. Titus is excited about the opportunity for the team.
"It's a great race because we
get to compete in a lot of different boats. But for these three, competing in
different races means that they will race, then row back to the dock at a
relaxed pace. After they take a break, they will head out again for the next
race.
For North Allegheny, the Head of
the Ohio is a good way to measure the competition for the spring.
"Fall is a warm-up to
spring," Heckenstaller says. "There's a lot of teams from Ohio and
Midwest, some Philadelphia and Virginia." If the team returns to the Midwest Championships in Detroit,
these teams will be competing against them.
Heckenstaller also thinks the Head
of the Ohio is a great race because it gives the athletes a chance to show what
they can do in front of 40 to 50 colleges in attendance.
"It's a good way for colleges
to get a look at kids," he says.
For Titus, her main concern is
competing.
"It's a historically good regatta for us. We're looking forward to getting out and racing."