T.C. Williams Reaches Three Finals in Coach's Last Stotesbury Regatta

PHILADELPHIA, May 17 -- T.C. Williams girls' rowing coach Steve Weir pedaled down the Schuylkill River footpath for the last time at the Stotesbury Cup Regatta on Saturday.

In each of Weir's 33 seasons he worked with his crews for 15 hours a week. Each season's hard work culminated in the three-hour drive to Philadelphia for a handful of races that would each last five minutes and change.

And that work has paid off, as Weir's teams have won a total of 12 times at Stotesbury and at Scholastic Rowing Association of America Nationals.

On a day in which no Washington area varsity teams won medals, Weir's Titans were a bright spot, placing three teams in the finals.

"It's kind of been a huge highlight to come here," said Weir, who is retiring after this season.

Weir biked down the path, staying alongside his team's boat, during the girls' first eight final.

On the far side of the river, his team labored in Lane 6. Early in the race the team was in second place. But in the second half of the course, Lane 6 slides by an island, which brings the disadvantage of a slower current.

"Once we got the effects of Lane 6, we just kind of had to find the inner strength," coxswain Emily Haitsuka said. The Titans slipped to fourth, but held off fifth-place Mainland by 0.4 of a second.

"Coming in fourth in Lane 6 is a pretty noble effort, they're representing Northern Virginia well," Weir said of his team, which finished in 5 minutes 25.4 seconds.

A week ago Yorktown Coach Andy Bacas read his team an Edgar Guest poem, "The Things That Haven't Been Done Before." His boys' first eight boat was about to race in the Virginia Scholastic Rowing Championships, and was hoping to beat local powerhouse Jefferson for the first time.

The Patriots lost that race, but got another chance when the crews were in the same semifinal Saturday.

And with the pre-race poetry replaced by what Bacas called "a stern talking-to about disappointment," Yorktown accomplished what had never been done before.

"I'd say our race plan was just to go out and beat T.J., if that took us to the final, so be it, if not, we're still proud," Yorktown coxswain Elliott Oakley said. Yorktown finished the semifinal in 4:34.42, good for third place.

Yorktown's moral victory by 0.17 of a second was the largest accomplishment of any of the Washington area boys' first eight boat.

Jefferson had placed fourth in Friday's time trial, Gonzaga sixth, but neither advanced to the six-team final.

It was especially disappointing for Jefferson, winner of two of the last three Stotesbury Cups.

"We got blown out of the water by modest crews," Jefferson Coach Todd Jesdale said.

Stotesbury Cup Regatta Broken Record: Saturday's regatta included a record 860 boats. Almost 5,000 rowers from 180 schools across the United States and Canada competed. Domination: St. Joseph's Prep of Philadelphia won every boys' eight race. Stotesbury Cup Regatta Broken Record: Saturday's regatta included a record 860 boats. Almost 5,000 rowers from 180 schools across the United States and Canada competed. Domination: St. Joseph's Prep of Philadelphia won every boys' eight race.