Oct. 29, 2008
THIS WEEK — The University of Iowa women’s rowing team will continue its fall season Sunday as it travels to Calumet Park, IL, for the Southland Regatta. Races will begin at approximately 10 a.m.
THE RACE — Depending on the race, rowers will race under three to six bridges on the Calumet Sag Channel at Fay’s Point. Spectators will be able to watch from these bridges as well as several other locations along the course. The Hawkeyes will be racing three boats in the varsity eights and two boats in the novice eights.
LAST EVENT — In their last outing, the Hawkeyes put together top-10 finishes in every race they competed in. Boat A in the varsity eights finished in second which was the highest placing for the Hawkeyes. Clara Francois and Jess Novack finished seventh in the varsity pairs while Laura Kanaris and Christine Allingham also cracked the top-10 at ninth. Additionally, boat D in the varsity fours finished ninth out of the 30 boats competing.
HEAD COACH — Mandi Kowal is in her 15th 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 have continued to plug away at our mission for the year, and this is the “second step” up so to speak. As we approach every race we look at it as an opportunity to test our changes we have been working hard to cement. I am very interested to see how our group responds but more importantly, improve on last year’s performance from bottom to top.”
QUOTING COACH CALLEN — “The varsity has had a few weeks to get in some good work since the Rock. This race will be a good evaluation on how we are progressing as a team.”