Amid rain and unseasonable temperatures, a good number of fans and the University pep band, the Virginia women's rowing competed against Michigan State early Saturday morning.
Unfortunately for the Cavaliers, Rivanna Reservoir did not seem to provide much of a home-court advantage. Michigan State won three of the four races including the novice eight, varsity four and first varsity eight competitions.
"Michigan State is a rising crew and has shown the rowing community that they are not to be taken lightly" captain Kerry Maher said. "We expected to have to race offensively and definitely were not expecting anything to come for free."
The Spartans won the first race of the day when their novice eight defeated the Cavaliers with a time of 7:04. Virginia's novice "A" boat crossed the finish line in 7:10 followed by the novice "B" boat with a time of 7:41.
The varsity four competition had to be restarted after the first 1000 meters. Virginia's "A" four boat started off in the lead, but about halfway down the course ran into a buoy which caused one of the rowers to crab. Following the restart, the Spartans won the second race with a time of 7:35.2. The Cavalier's "A" and "B" four boats came in with times of 7:41.22 and 7:58.5, respectively.
The day's third race turned out to be the bright spot of the regatta for Virginia. The second varsity eight defeated Michigan State with a time of 6:42.26. The boat consisted of Caitlin Mixter (coxswain), Mindy Fiesler, Renee Albers, Katrin Sydlik, Bridget Fowler, Kelsie Chaudoin, Mieke Pitts, Anna Samaha and Crystal MacLeod.
The first varsity eight lost to Michigan State in the day's final race. While Virginia started off the race in the lead, they fell behind around the turn and never fully recovered. The Spartans won with a time of 6:35.45 followed by the Cavaliers who finished in 6:40.67.
"We didn't have a great turn, but more importantly we didn't respond when they walked on us before, during, and after the turn," captain Sara Lippa said. "We tried to respond, but when a crew is moving on you it is very hard to keep calm and focus on maintaining good technique. This is probably the main thing we need to work on through the rest of the season in order to be successful at NCAAs."
After the regatta, the team dedicated two of its boats, one to the Cavalier parents and one to Senior Associate Athletic Director Jane Miller.
"Jane Miller has put in tremendous effort for all of the Olympic sports, frequently attends all of our races and supports us," Lippa said. "In rowing, getting a boat named after you is a big deal, and it just seemed appropriate to dedicate a boat to her after all she has done for us."
Looking ahead to this weekend, the team will be traveling to Princeton, N.J. to face crews from Princeton and Yale. Many consider Princeton's first varsity eight to be the fastest in the country right now and the competition will be fierce. Nevertheless, the Cavaliers are hopeful that they can win more races than Princeton for the second year in a row.
"Last year we went into Princeton with a similar win-loss record and knowing that Princeton had lots of speed," Maher said. "And yet, we surprised not only ourselves but everyone there by hanging with them down the course right through the finish."
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