ERIE, Pa. - Head coach Adrian Spracklen and the Mercyhurst University rowing program had another very strong season in 2011-12 and will be looking to build upon the program's recent success in 2012-13. The men's varsity lightweight eight captured gold at the Dad Vail Regatta for the third consecutive season last May, while the women's team reached the NCAA Division II Championships for the second straight year and third time in the last four seasons.

Spracklen will be bringing in what may be the program's largest recruiting class for the upcoming 2012-13 campaign, and the long-time Laker mentor (16th season with the women, 13th with the men) will be looking to his youth to continue building on the rowing tradition at Mercyhurst.

"This year's recruited class of men is our first with a focus on lightweights," said Spracklen about his incoming male athletes. "We're fortunate to have lost only one from our Dad Vail championship eight and we have brought in a large group of top-quality athletes to help us push up to the next level."

Spracklen continued about his newcomers on the women's program.

"This year, we've got what is probably our largest class of recruited women," said Spracklen. "We've lost several of the women out of last year's eight that attended the NCAA's and we're looking for the women to step up and make an impact on the team."

A dozen newcomers will be joining both the men's and women's programs in 2012-13.

The fall season for the men's and women's rowing programs will begin on Saturday, October 13 at the Head of the Genesee in Rochester, N.Y.

2012-13 WOMEN'S NEWCOMERS

Michelle Ahrens (5-7, Erie, Pa.)
Comments: Michelle continues a local line of rowers that we have coming from Collegiate Academy, where she was coached by one of our alums, Bethany Brun. 

Erin Burns (5-5, Clifton Park, N.Y.)
Comments: Erin is an extremely hard worker. She's got big expectations for her time here at Mercyhurst and we expect she'll put in the work to get there.

Krystal Cappola (5-10, South Yarmouth, Mass.)
Comments: Krystal was a swimmer and played basketball along with her rowing career. With limited training, she's been able to accomplish some good athletic achievements. We expect she'll thrive in a full-time rowing environment.

Kathleen Castonguay (5-7, Northville, Mich.)
Comments: Kate is motivated to achieve great things at Mercyhurst and we're anxious to see her work towards those goals.

Laura Ebersbach (5-1, Baldwinsville, N.Y.)
Comments: Laura comes to us as a seasoned and experienced coxswain and has worked with prior Mercyhurst coxswains. We're excited to see Laura incorporate our way of racing into her repertoire.

Jessica Garver (5-7, Gibsonia, Pa.)
Comments: Jessica comes with very high accolades from her high school coach. We're anxious to see how she responds to our training.

Meghan Hogan (5-4, Absecon, N.J.)
Comments: Meghan is one of two women we have coming to us from Holy Spirit this year. Both Meghan and Alexis Theuret had a great racing season this year and we look for them to continue that trend at Mercyhurst.

Alexandra Kleckner (5-5, Erie, Pa.)
Comments: Allie is our lone transfer student in this incoming class. She spent her freshman year at Cleveland State University where she rowed with their club program. She's anxious to be a part of a varsity program and we're excited to see her progress.

Paiton Michael (5-7, Amherst, N.Y.)
Comments: Paiton comes to Mercyhurst from a small girls school in Buffalo with a relatively small rowing program. We're looking forward to watching Paiton progress as a rower and student.

Allissa Porter (5-0, Mystic, Conn.)
Comments: Allissa brings an immensely positive attitude with her to the team. She's an accomplished coxswain who we expect will help push our crews to continued success.

Margaret Switzer (5-9, Dayton, Ohio)
Comments: Maggie continues a line of rowers we've had from the Dayton Boat Club. These women come from a program that share the same values that we hold important at Mercyhurst. We expect her to thrive here.

Alexis Theuret (5-7, Galloway, N.J.)
Comments: Alexis comes from Holy Spirit High School with teammate Meghan Hogan. The two had a successful racing season last year and we look forward to that continued success with us.

2012-13 MEN'S NEWCOMERS

Juan Avila (5-10, 155, Coral Gables, Fla.)
Comments: Juan comes from a highly competitive Southeastern lightweight high school program and we're looking forward to see him continue his progression at Mercyhurst.

Jonathan Blazevic (6-1, 155, Davisburg, Mich.)
Comments: Jonathan comes to us from St. Mary's in Michigan and follows the footsteps of previous alumni that have had very successful college careers here. We expect Jonathan to continue that heritage.

Kevon Bridges (5-11, 165, Washington, D.C.)
Comments: Kevon had a stellar racing season during his senior year by going undefeated in their men's varsity eight. We have high expectations for Kevon and feel he will add speed to the top boats this year.

Aaron Dowd (5-10, 157, Montclair, N.J.)
Comments: Aaron is a very persistent individual who we believe will benefit from the academic programs at Mercyhurst as much as he will benefit the rowing program.

Mitchell Fairer (5-10, 140, Elkton, Md.)
Comments: Mitch comes to us with an infectious enthusiasm for the sport and we anticipate that attitude will help him reach his potential.

Kyle Hill (6-0, 165, Turnersville, N.J.)
Comments: Kyle is the lone inexperienced recruit for this year's incoming class. He is an accomplished swimmer and we believe his work ethic from the pool will carry over into the boat. We're looking forward to teaching him a new stroke.

Blaze Kelly (5-7, 137, New Milford, Conn.)
Comments: Blaze is the next installment of the long line of scullers we've had from GMS. We'll look to Blaze to follow in the tradition of hard work and skilled rowing.

Harrison Kiefer (5-11, 127, Philadelphia, Pa.)
Comments: Harrison comes from Boathouse Row on a delayed enrollment. He's spent the past year coaching and rowing and we are excited to see his contribution to the team.

Jake Lennon (5-9, 140, Pittsburgh, Pa.)
Comments: Jake is another guy we have coming whose work ethic attracted us to him. We expect he will put in the time needed to be successful and will develop into a top lightweight.

Conor Moran (5-11, 155, Sunbury, Ohio)
Comments: Conor is a bit of a legacy with the team, as his older sister, Kate, will begin her junior year this season. Conor is a motivated athlete and will likely flourish in this environment.

Xavier Stanish (6-1, 153, Devon, Pa.)
Comments: Xavier comes from one of Philadelphia's premier rowing schools. We're looking forward to seeing what he's able to accomplish at Mercyhurst.

Milos Veres (6-0, 155, Belgrade, Serbia)
Comments: Milos continues our line of standout Serbian rowers. He had a tremendous racing season on the European circuit this summer and qualified for the European Championships. We fully expect him to achieve great things here at Mercyhurst.

Alexander Walters (6-0, 151, Buffalo, N.Y.)
Comments: Alexander is a fierce competitor who we expect will push hard to be in a top boat come this spring.