Team competed with Virgina, Duke, Miami, and North Carolina at Clemson

The women’s rowing squad competed in ACC Championships this past weekend down in South Carolina at Clemson University. They rowed against Clemson, Virginia, Duke, Miami, and North Carolina. The weekend consisted of just one 2,000-meter race per boat type with all six teams rowing head-to-head.

The team finished 4th place overall as a team. The first varsity eight finished 5th in their race while the second varsity eight, novice eight, and first varsity four all finished in 4th place.

BC raced two varsity 8-man squads, a varsity 4-man squad, and a novice 8-man squad. Each race offers a chance for a team to earn points toward their overall score for the day.

BC’s rowers had their most successful competition the weekend before the ACC’s against Holy Cross and UConn. The varsity 8-man, varsity 4-man, and the second varsity 4-man boats all won their respective races. This provided an optimistic boost of confidence for the crew as they headed into the ACC regatta as an underdog.

Though our rowing team is slightly undersized, in both stature and number, the program is most assuredly on the rise. Recruiting has increased steadily over the past couple of years, as is seen in the six letters of intent already signed by high school seniors. The team’s work ethic also keeps them competitive. They wake up around 5 a.m. on most mornings to jog down to the boathouse and get on the water well before 6:00 rolls around. They also row five days a week, only once in the afternoon.

A major component of any boat on a rowing team is its coxswain. The coxswain does not row, but acts as the leader of the boat by counting time and keeping the rowers coordinated and rowing at proper pace. She also implements the crew’s race plan by increasing or decreasing strokes per minute strategically at certain parts of the race.

Rowers earn a spot on the first or second squads by proving themselves not on the water, but on an indoor rowing machine. This is the only way to tell how good someone is individually, since on the water the boat is rowing as a team. Lineups are always changing, though, and someone can row on the varsity 8-man boat one weekend and the second varsity boat the next.

The crew team is now looking ahead to the regatta in Boston, known as the rowing version of the Beanpot, as well as the Eastern Sprints regatta, which is composed of the most elite rowing programs on the East coast including Yale, Brown, and Virginia. If our lady rowers do well in both the Beanpot and the Eastern Sprints, they have a chance to make it to the NCAA regatta.

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