Aug. 6, 2009

LOS ANGELES, Calif. -

Two LMU rowers - one an alum and one a current student-athlete - carried the banner for LMU rowing into the summer, turning in fine performances at national and international events. Chris Erhart `12 won a silver medal in the women's singles at the USRowing Club National Championships while Warren Anderson `06 placed fourth in the B Final of the men's singles at the Rowing World Cup in Lucerne, Switzerland.

Erhart, who will be entering her sophomore year at LMU in the fall, traveled to Oak Ride, Tenn. for the 2009 USRowing Club National Championships, held July 15-19 on Melton Lake. Rowing for her hometown Tempe Junior Crew, Erhart was entered into both the intermediate singles and intermediate pairs events. In singles, she won her heat in 9:14.23 to advance to the semifinals, where she finished third in 9:10.58. Her placing was good enough to move her on to the final, where she lowered her time considerably to bring home the silver in 8:22.90.

Meanwhile, Erhart was teamed with Alex Cours in the intermediate pairs. The duo swept through the heat and semifinal stages, winning both in times of 8:04.53 and 8:08.32, respectively. They went even faster in the final, but it was not enough as their time of 7:50.58 placed them fifth.

Anderson, a 2006 LMU graduate, continues to make a name for himself on the international circuit. Last year, he was named as an alternate for the US Olympic team in Beijing and he previously had won the bronze medal at the 2007 Pan American Games. This past July, he traveled to Lucerne Rotsee in Switzerland for the 20th Annual Rowing World Cup. Competing as a single sculler, Anderson started by placing second in his heat in 7:23.29. Only one rower advanced from each heat to the semifinal and Anderson was a mere three seconds behind the winner of his heat, two-time Olympic Champion Olaf Tufte of Norway. Despite finishing second, Anderson would have a second shot at the semifinal via the repechage, which he won in a time of 7:28.66. There would be no qualifying for the A Final, however, as he finished fifth in his semifinal in 7:15.08. The top three from each semi went on to the A Final while the remaining rowers advanced to the B Final. Anderson completed his World Cup experience by reducing his time for the second straight race but in fourth place in the B Final in 7:12.24.