Indiana and Purdue among opposition at Indiana Classic
BY CHRISTINE ARMSTRONG
Sports Writer
The sun has been shining over Notre Dame and womens rowing coach Martin Stone couldn't be more pleased.
The team, which has only been on the water for a little over two weeks, is capitalizing on the unusually warm weather conditions as it prepares for this weekend's Indiana Classic.
Before its Spring Break regattas in Tennessee and South Carolina, the team had only practiced in the boats once since November. The rowers quickly acclimated themselves to the water, though, and garnered victories at both Tennessee and Clemson, and most recently, raced side by side against Michigan last weekend.
"The weather makes a huge difference and has given us the opportunity to get out in the boats," said Stone. "Just as in any other weather-dependent sport, we work best when the conditions are favorable. We have been learning from our races, rotating rowers, and identifying areas to work on. The girls have been very receptive in practice."
Practices out in the boats enable the rowers to both solidify team unity and hone technical problems. The rowers are determined to challenge their noteworthy 2002 spring season performance and return to the NCAA Championships.
"We've worked hard every day since last year with this goal in mind," said Erica Drennen. It's certainly an attainable goal, but one that will take continued hard work up until the end."
In West Lafayette, Drennen and the other rowers will take on Indiana and Purdue. At last year's classic, Notre Dame won the varsity eight race by almost 15 seconds and the varsity four had an equally impressive win by 20 seconds.
The rowers are confident that they will have another strong showing. They will finally implement their race plan over a full 2,000 meter course, and hope to move one step closer to the NCAA Championships.
"I personally have high expectations for our 2003 season because I know our
team has the ability to achieve them," said coxswain Kacy McCaffrey. "I am very excited for the racing opportunities that lie ahead of us, and I know that the training and the heart that this team has will take us far."
All Sports Stories for Friday, March 28, 2003
