March 6, 2006
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
THIS WEEK: The University of Iowa rowing team will travel to Austin, TX, to race against Wisconsin on Sunday.
THE RACE: This weekend’s races will be held in a scrimmage format on Town Lake in Austin, TX. Races will be a variety of slow and steady rowing and short pieces. Both teams will be using these races as preparation for the upcoming season.
THE COMPETITION: The Wisconsin Badgers finished their fall season racing at the Rivanna Romp in Charlottesville, VA. The Badgers finished first and second in the Open Four and took another second place in the Varsity Eight race. At the Head of the Iowa, Wisconsin finished ahead of Iowa in the Open Pair, Novice Eight and Open Eight. This weekend’s race will open Wisconsin’s spring season.
LAST TIME OUT: The Hawkeye rowers ended their fall season when they hosted the Head of the Iowa on October 30, 2005. Iowa A finished fourth in the Open Eight and Iowa B finished 10th. The Hawkeyes had four boats in the Novice Eight race. In the Open Pair, the team of senior Lydia McGee and freshman Kat Davy-Traynor finished in 17:24 and placed third. Freshman Laura Kanaris had the Hawkeyes best overall finish of the day when she placed second in the Open Single with a time of 18:18.
HEAD COACH: Mandi Kowal is in her 12th year as head coach of the Hawkeyes. In the 1997 and 1998 NCAA Rowing Championships, she coached the Varsity 4+ teams to fourth and eighth-places finishes, respectively. Kowal began her rowing career at the University of Wisconsin in 1981. She was a two-time rowing World Champion in the Women’s Lightweight 4- (1986-1987). She was named Female Athlete of the Year in 1987 by the US Rowing Association and was inducted into the United States Rowing Hall of Fame in 1997.
QUOTING COACH KOWAL: “Everyone is very excited about the upcoming racing season, but you have to be realistic as well. This is probably the youngest group I have ever coached here. I have been pleased with their work ethic and desire to race. It bodes well for the future. We haven’t begun rowing consistently on the water yet, but I know we have put in more rowing miles than any other year. This spring will give the athletes a good look at where we are and what we need to do to get back into the nation’s top 15. I am excited to see how they handle each racing opportunity.”