Nov. 1, 2010
By MICHELE DANNO
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Although the defending Big Ten champion Wisconsin Badgers dominated the final competition for the 2010 fall rowing season at the Head of the Iowa on Oct. 31, the University of Iowa remains optimistic and hopes to learn from its shortcomings to prepare for the spring season.
“We were against some really great competition and we held our own against Wisconsin,” UI senior captain Haylie Miller said. “It’s one thing to go this weekend and say we raced our best and still came up short, but we know we didn’t race our best and we can improve. We turned it into a positive. That’s what we’re looking for.”
One apparent area of improvement the Hawkeyes highlighted was their racing technique, which they said they will work to improve in the upcoming offseason.
“We need to work a lot on technique,” senior Katie Radasevich said. “We know the power is there, but it’s just working together and sending the whole boat as a unit.”
Another way the Hawkeyes work as a unit is with internal competition between their boats. Radasevich said Sunday’s races showed close contests between each Iowa group, and this style of racing helps push her teammates to succeed.
“Overall, I think our racing was extremely aggressive,” Radasevich said following Sunday’s meet. “We had a lot of racing within boats of Iowa, which just sort of pushes us. We came in with a plan of attack, and I think for the most part we executed it well.”
But executing their plan “for the most part” just won’t do it for head coach Mandi Kowal, who said she was expecting a bit of a better performance ¬– especially in front of her alma mater Wisconsin, where she rowed from 1981-1985.
Comparing the 2010 Head of the Iowa to last year’s, Kowal said the main difference was the level of competition. In 2009, she said Iowa won all the events, but having the Badgers attend this year’s regatta “upped the ante.”
Still, she remains positive and sees this as an opportunity for her team to compete among the best and learn where they compare to other conference rivals.
“I would say I maybe wanted a little better performance today,” Kowal said. “There were definitely some highlights, but I want to win. I’m just going to be hungry to make some changes and get to a better place.”
The Hawkeyes will take a few days off to rest before beginning offseason training to make the necessary improvements before spring season begins March 19.