Rowing to win at Big Tens
May 13, 2015 | Women's Rowing
May 13, 2015
MADISON, Wis. --- The Wisconsin women's rowing team looks to improve on a four-year run of third-place finishes at the Big Ten championships, as it competes in the 2015 edition this weekend in Indianapolis.
"This week is finals week," head coach Bebe Bryans said. "It's also Big Ten Championship prep week, so we are looking at it as the `icing on the cake week' because all of the work has been done. They've studied for their finals, now they just have to take them, and they've done all the work they needed to do on the water, and now they need to continue to have confidence and be ready to go, but we're really excited."
In 15 years of the Big Ten championships, Wisconsin has won the title once in 2010. Repeating their championship finish will not get any easier this year, as the races feature a flurry of top-ranked Big Ten squads.
In addition to No. 8 UW, three other boats appear in the latest CRCA/USRowing Coaches poll. Ohio State leads the way at No. 1, while Indiana and Michigan are ranked 12th and 13th, respectively. Minnesota (22) and Iowa (24) remain just outside of the top-20, but are receiving votes.
When asked if this year's team can win the Big Ten title, Bryans answered in the affirmative, "I think we can. We're going to give it a go, for sure. They (Ohio State) are really good! They're really well coached, and they're a team that's used to winning.
"So we know they're not going to do us any favors, and we might need a little bit of help to actually pull it off, but, yeah, we think we can win, and they're just one of the teams that we have to beat, which is a pretty exciting thing to be able to say.
"I don't mind if that ends up on anybody's locker room wall. I think they know we're coming and I hope they are, too."
Wisconsin enters the Big Ten championships as the top seed in four of the seven races, but are No. 3 in the varsity eight behind Ohio State and Indiana, and No. 2 in the second varsity eight behind OSU, the two most valuable events when points are doled out for the team championship. That is the challenge awaiting the Badgers.
Despite having one less race on the slate this year due to the timing of spring break, Wisconsin has been prepared, as the Badgers swept their past two competitions--the Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge and Devil's Lake Challenge.
In the first competition of the season, UW performed well against two-time defending NCAA champion Ohio State and Rutgers at the Big Ten Double Dual. The Badgers defeated the Scarlet Knights in all five races and took two races (varsity four, novice eight) from OSU.
"We've been able to win some races by some pretty big margins, and that means they're going for it," Bryans remarked. "They're going for the time, they're not just going for the win, and that means they're training to go against the fastest boats in the country, so because of that and the fact that we've already seen some really fast teams, we will be ready."
The Big Ten championships represent the Badgers' final race before the NCAA championships. The Big Ten champion will receive one of the 11 total automatic bids to the NCAA races. The field will be rounded out with 11 at-large spots, which will be announced in a selection show on NCAA.com, set for 5 p.m. on Tuesday, May 19.
2015 Big Ten Rowing Championships
Eagle Creek Park, Indianapolis
Saturday-Sunday, May 16-17
Seeds
Varsity Eight
1. Ohio State, 2. Indiana, 3. Wisconsin, 4. Michigan, 5. Minnesota, 6. Iowa, 7. Michigan State, 8. Rutgers
Second Varsity Eight
1. Ohio State, 2. Wisconsin, 3. Indiana, 4. Michigan, 5. Minnesota, 6. Iowa, 7. Michigan State, 8. Rutgers
Varsity Four1. Wisconsin, 2. Ohio State, 3. Michigan, 4. Minnesota, 5. Iowa, 6. Indiana, 7. Michigan State, 8. Rutgers
Novice Eight
1. Wisconsin, 2. Ohio State, 3. Michigan State, 4. Indiana, 5. Iowa, 6. Michigan, 7. Minnesota, 8. Rutgers
Second Novice Eight
1. Oiho State, 2. Wisconsin, 3. Indiana, 4. Michigan, 5. Michigan State, 6. Iowa, 7. Minnesota
Second Varsity Four
1. Wisconsin, 2. Ohio State, 3. Iowa, 4. Michigan, 5. Minnesota, 6. Indiana, 7. Rutgers
Third Varsity Four
1. Wisconsin, 2. Ohio State, 3. Iowa, 4. Michigan, 5. Minnesota, 6. Indiana, 7. Rutgers
