Bobcats of the week of May 30, 2011

Matt Bettles '13

Bates College sophomore Matt Bettles earned his first NCAA All-America honors on Friday by reaching the Round of 16 at the Division III Men’s Tennis Singles Championship, hosted by Pomona-Pitzer.Bettles (Taunton, England) defeated Max Woods, a senior from Washington University in St. Louis, in three sets in the opening round of play, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. Bettles advanced to the Round of 16 in the longest match of the Round of 32, clinching All-America status.Bettles fell 6-3, 6-1 in the Round of 16 to the top seed and eventual finalist, Emory University’s Dylan Pottish, but he returned home, a continent and an ocean away, with the satisfaction of becoming an NCAA All-American. Bettles became the team’s seventh All-American men’s tennis player and the fifth in the past six years.Bettles and sophomore teammate Rob Crampton (Wilton, Conn.) were the alternates to compete in the NCAA Doubles Championship from the Northeast region, but weren’t able to compete.

Women's Rowing Team '11

The Bates College women’s rowing team had its best showing ever at the NCAA Division III Rowing Championship on Saturday at the Sacramento State Aquatic Center, while claiming national runner-up status for the third straight year.Bates came closer than ever before to claiming the NCAA championship: the Ephs scored 19 points, while the Bobcats came up with 16.Bates’ first varsity eight (1V8) was second to Williams in the Grand Final for the third straight year. The Bobcats stood in second place between Williams and third-place Wellesley after each 500-meter interval in the 2,000-meter race. Rounding out the race were Ithaca (7:09.99), William Smith (7:14.04) and Williams’ 2V8 in sixth at 7:16.56.Bates’ second varsity eight (2V8) fared its best of all five team appearances at NCAAs, taking second place in the Petite Final. Bates trailed the 1V8′s of Puget Sound and Trinity, both by a fraction of a second, after the first 1,000 meters. The Bobcats pushed ahead of Puget Sound in the third quarter of the race and finished in 7:08.22, 1.97 seconds behind Trinity’s 1V8 and 4.16 seconds ahead of third place Puget Sound. The Bates 2V8′s best ever previous showing at NCAAs was getting third place in the petite final.

Bates 1V8 lineup: senior coxswain Nora Collins (Kensington, Md.), junior strokeAllison DiSalvo (Lowell, Mass.), juniorElizabeth Sonshine (Short Hills, N.J.), seniorEmma White (Bainbridge Island, Wash.), senior Phoebe Reed (Brooklyn, N.Y.), seniorRebecca Waldo (Dracut, Mass.), junior Kelsey Dion (Truckee, Calif.), junior Haley Sive(Glenville, N.Y.), and senior bow Ellen Patterson (St. Louis Park, Minn.).

Bates 2V8 lineup: first-year coxswain Gabby Bilotta (Washington, D.C.), first-year strokeSarah Murphy (Wellesley, Mass.), seniorHannah Richardson (Concord, Mass.), first-year Hope King (Greenwich, Conn.), first-yearAlexandra Hill (Wayland, Mass.), first-yearHeather Monty (Bedford, N.H.), sophomoreCatherine Tuttle (Pittsford, N.Y.), junior Amy Jacks (Baltimore, Md.), and first-year bowAisling Ryan (Millis, Mass.).