March 27, 2007
THIS WEEK: The University of Iowa women’s rowing team will be host to Minnesota, Drake and Creighton Saturday. All races will be held at Lake MacBride in Solon, IA, beginning at 8 a.m. The course distance is 2,000 meters. Iowa will be competing in a number of events.
DIRECTIONS TO LAKE MACBRIDE: Starting from the Hampton Inn (exit 242): – Turn left out of the hotel onto 1st Avenue. – Stay to the right at round about and continue on 1st Avenue (becomes North Liberty Road) for 3.4 miles. – Turn left on Dubuque Street to North Liberty (1.6 miles). – In North Liberty, turn right on N. Front Street (F28). – North Front Street becomes Mehaffey Bridge Road. Continue for 4.8 miles. – Immediately after the causeway, turn left on Cottage Reserve. – Follow signs to the right to the boat ramp (0.7 miles)
LONGHORN INVITATIONAL: In the three day event, the Hawkeyes posted five wins in four different events. Friday’s win came from the first novice eight boat (7:06.0) over Central Florida (7:11.0). Improving on day two the Hawkeye took a pair of wins in the 1V8+ and 1N8+. The first varsity eight finished over Miami (6:51.0) in a time of 6:46.0. Iowa’s first novice eight also finished over Miami (8:21.0) in a time of 7:24.0. Finally, the Hawkeyes finished strong with three wins on Sunday. In varsity action, the first and second eight boats posted times of 7:04.0 and 7:22.0 respectively, while Kansas State 1V8+ finished at 7:20.0 and the 2V8+ finished at 7:42.0. The second novice eight boat finished ahead of Kansas State (8:04.0) in a time of 7:50.0.
HEAD COACH: Mandi Kowal is in her 13th 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: “We are anxious to put to the test the changes we have implemented since our first weekend of racing. We have been lucky to be on the water since our return from spring break and want to take the next performance step. Minnesota is a fast team and Creighton is getting faster providing an excellent test for our crews.”