Rowing struggles to stay afloat in San Diego grand final

Shaking up the water with a slight victory on Saturday, the UCLA rowing team’s high performance did not last long, as the Bruins were beaten by the lack of rhythm on Sunday.

Racing for the first time this season in a six-boat race (meaning there are multiple opponents within the race unlike dual meets that include only one opponent),the Bruins were able to test some of their improving skills as well as to observe their weaknesses as senior stroke Erin Wenzel said. The teams that competed at the San Diego Crew Classic were from all over the United States.

Saturday proved to be a great racing day for the Bruins as the first varsity eight, first varsity four, second varsity eight and novice eight all finished in second place, and the open eight finished in first place.

“On the first day we had a pretty good race; we all stayed composed and together,” said junior stroke Cathy Stolitzka. “It was good to see that all the changes we made in practice stayed for even the intense race situation.”

Knowing that they were still not performing at their best and that they had more aggressive and better races, as Stolitzka mentioned, the Bruins left Saturday with a positive mentality as they qualified for the grand final with a second-place finish.

In the grand final on Sunday, the women had a better start than they did on Saturday; however, they struggled to find rhythm and come together in the end. Finding rhythm is critical for spring races, especially when the Bruins are trying to achieve top boat speed. When the eight rowers in the boat are not in sync, like on Sunday, achieving top boat speed is difficult.

The first varsity eight came in sixth place on Sunday, the second varsity eight came in fifth place, the open eight came in fourth place and the varsity four came in third place.

“Obviously we were disappointed with our performance today (Sunday). We can learn the most from the less than ideal finishes,” said junior port Kate Miller. “After the race,we talked a lot about going back recommitted and more fired up than ever. I have confidence and belief that we will emerge from this result a stronger and more united boat and team.”

Taking the results from this weekend as learning experiences, the Bruins are looking at the meet as an early meet in the season and a first chance at testing themselves in a six-boat racing environment, as Miller mentioned.

Going back to practice, the women will target their weaknesses, such as adding on aggression and power through the drive as well as maintaining a slow and calm recovery. Also, boat rhythm, end sprints and fast starts are among the different skills to improve.

“Overall it was an extremely competitive race and now UCLA is more fired up than ever this year to gain more speed over the next two months,” said sophomore coxswain Logan Warwick.