NCAA rowing begins Friday for the Badgers
May 28, 2015 | Women's Rowing
May 28, 2015
NCAA Rowing Central | Heat and Lane Assignments
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MADISON, Wis. --- Redemption and revenge are a couple of popular words used in the sports world after a team loses a big game, but then gets a rematch later in a season or even the following year.
For the No. 12 Wisconsin women's rowing program, they get one of those chances at redemption on Friday when the varsity eight takes to Lake Natoma in Gold River, California for its heat at 11:20 a.m. CT.
That marks the start of the 2015 NCAA Rowing Championships for the Badgers, an event runs Friday-Sunday.
Wisconsin's varsity eight finished fourth in the event at the Big Ten championships back on May 17 behind two-time defending NCAA champion Ohio State, as well as Michigan and Indiana. In Friday's NCAA heat, UW will see those same three schools, as well as UCF.
"We didn't bring it at the Big Tens and we are really ready to give it a second shot," junior Gillian Cooper stated. "We learned a lot while we were there, so it will be really exciting."
The top two crews from each of the four heats advance to the semifinals on Saturday, while the remaining crews race again Friday afternoon in two repechage heats. There, the top-two crews in each of the seven-boat repechages advance to the semifinals, while the rest drop into the C-D semifinals.
"This is a national competition, so you are going to be racing whoever is next to you, and whoever is next to you doesn't really matter," head coach Bebe Bryans said in talking about UW's varsity eight draw. "It is not like basketball where you've got to figure out what defense to play. Here, you figure out what your offense is and it doesn't matter what anybody else does. You run what is the best for you.
"There is a comfort factor in seeing familiar uniforms and blades and maybe some familiar faces, but it doesn't matter. West Coast, East Coast or in the middle, it doesn't matter."
Wisconsin's second varsity eight will take on Brown, Ohio State, Princeton, Northeastern and Jacksonville in its heat at 12:10 p.m.
The varsity four gets Ohio State, Washington State, Stanford, Northeastern and Jacksonville in its heat at 1 p.m.
The progressions for the second varsity eight and varsity four are identical to the varsity eight.
The Badgers are led by a large senior class that includes 17 rowers. That is a lot of experience to draw on, though none have been at an NCAA championships on Lake Natoma, which last played host to the NCAAs in 2011.
"I think we are all really excited," Cooper added. "I think all the girls are really bonded together and we are excited to see what we can do.
"We have a huge senior class. There are 17 girls graduating this year, so they are ready to throw down and really lead this team."
This marks the 12th NCAA appearance for Wisconsin, including the eight consecutive appearance and the 10th in 11 seasons under head coach Bebe Bryans (1999, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015).
2015 NCAA Rowing Championships
Gold River, Calif.
Lake Natoma
May 29-31, 2015
2,000 meters
Participating Teams
California, Ohio State, Stanford, Brown, Washington, Virginia, Michigan, Yale, Princeton, Indiana, Washington State, Texas, Harvard, Notre Dame, Wisconsin, USC, Gonzaga, UCF, Northeastern, Massachusetts, Navy, Jacksonville
Heat Schedule (May 29)
Varsity Eight
Heat 2 (seed) -- 11:20 a.m. CT
Ohio State (2), Michigan (7), Indiana (10), Wisconsin (15), UCF (18)
UW Lineup -- Coxswain Lily Hansen, Hannah Schwartz, Gillian Cooper, Sophia Vitas, Anne Rauschert, Steph Malchine, Brianna Dahm, Dani Steinberg
Second Varsity Eight
Heat 3 -- 12:10 p.m. CT
Brown (3), Ohio State (6), Wisconsin (11), Princeton (14), Northeastern (19), Jacksonville (22)
UW Lineup -- Coxswain Marie Hebert, Maria Schmid, Libby O'Rourke, Madeleine Wanamaker, Katie Muench, Claire Scott, Elizabeth Schoenfeldt, Anna Knutson, Nicole Hettmann
Varsity Four
Heat 4 -- 1 p.m. CT
Ohio State (4), Washington State (5), Wisconsin (12), Stanford (13), Northeastern (20), Jacksonville (21)
UW Lineup -- Coxswain Katherine Condon, Kelsey Kramer, Margo Grover, Pamela Schommer, Marissa Gibson
Players Mentioned
