The Massachusetts rowing team took second place at the Atlantic 10 championships in Pennsauken, N.J. on Saturday. The Minutewomen finished 13 points behind rival Rhode Island and one point ahead of Saint Joseph’s.

In a regatta where only the First Varsity 8, Second Varsity 8 and the Varsity 4 receive points for the team championship, UMass could only take first in the Varsity 4 with a time of 7:44.05 seconds, 13 seconds ahead of URI. URI took first in both the First and Second Varsity 8. The Rams’ First Varsity 8 finished with a time of 6:37.08, while UMass took a fifth-place finish with a time of 6:54.04. The Rams’ Second Varsity 8 finished three seconds ahead of UMass, which came in second with a time of 6:49.91.

UMass coach Jim Dietz said it was a tough weekend but that he was pleased with the overall effort of his crew. He thought that the team had come to a good peak. The one boat that Dietz said did not race to their potential was the First Varsity 8 boat. He chalked it up to nerves, adding that it could have been because some of the members of that boat had just been moved there and that it was a new race for them. Dietz was hoping to win the Second Varsity 8 after falling behind with the First Varsity 8, but they came up just short.

Not adding to the disappointment of finishing second was the addition of four members of the UMass crew to the Atlantic 10 All-Conference teams. Seniors Megan Donovan and Samantha Smith were named to the first team, while junior Alexandra DiMatteo and sophomore Amanda Doolin were named to the second team. Dietz said that Smith “has been a workhorse” since transferring from Fordham before the 2006-07 season and that Donovan, over her career, has made great strides and will actually be able to participate in rowing next year as a graduate student.

Dietz fully expected that the top three teams in the conference would end up being UMass, URI and Saint Joeseph’s, who ended up taking third over the weekend.

Dietz also said that the Atlantic 10 championships should be moved back and that all of the coaches within the conference agree. It makes more sense to have them later because the results shown at the championships would be more indicative of the entire season. The season goes on for another month or so after the championships.

UMass took third in the Novice 8 and Novice 4 with times of 7:22.20 and 8:30.26. Teresa O’Brien and Emily Hagan won the pair race by almost a full 30 seconds, beating out two URI pairs with a time of 8:33.03. The two URI pairs times were 9:02.67 and 9:36.72, respectively.

UMass will take on MIT this Saturday and Vermont on Sunday. Both regattas will take place on the Connecticut River.

Eric Mansfield can be reached at [email protected].