PHILADELPHIA, PA (4/20/02) - The Saint Joseph's men's rowing team captured gold medals in the freshmen eight and the lightweight eight at the Murphy Cup to highlight a strong day on the Schuylkill River. In a tune-up prior to next week's A-10 Championships, the freshmen eight took on some of the top competition for this year's Dad Vail Championship, and was more than up to the challenge. The Hawks took control early, and maintained a boat length lead throughout the race. SJU's number one freshman boat also in the junior varsity race, one of three events on the day for the Hawk newcomers. The Lightweight eight of coxswain Heather Alba, stroke Justin Marconi, Pat McGettigan, Sean McCullagh, Jason Bansch, Brian Pirritano, Lee Bink, and Joe Francks continued its dominance of Fordham, an A-10 and Dad Vail rival. The Hawks bested the Rams on the water for the fourth straight time in winning the gold medal. The lightweight eight also raced in the varsity eight competition, finishing a strong sixth in a field that included Temple, Drexel and Dowling. The Hawks will next compete at the A-10 Championships on Saturday, April 27 on the Cooper River in Camden, NJ.