Two-time world champion French skier Jean-Claude Killy once said, "The only way to win is to watch and imitate a champion."
The second-year women's rowing squad will attempt to do just that, as the Blue Devils look to race against rivals North Carolina, Clemson and defending national champion Virginia in their spring season.
"We're going to find out a lot about our team," freshman varsity-eight rower Abby Hawkins said. "I'm looking forward to racing all three of those [teams]."
This year Duke crew returns stronger, faster and more experienced than last season's debut. A 20-member freshman recruiting class and the team's first senior transfer, Yng-Ru Chen, will bolster the Blue Devils in the 2000-meter sprint competitions.
Chen joined the Blue Devils last fall from Williams College, where she was part of the 1998 New England championship team that finished fifth at the Grand Finals of the NCAAs.
To prepare for the shorter, faster sprint season, head coach Robyn Horner took the Blue Devils to Orlando, Fla., over winter break to train.
"Our training was very productive," Hawkins said. "[In one exercise], we were paired with a partner similar in power and technique style and we practiced together in our own boat."
Horner's pairing choices not only pushed her rowers to succeed, but also demonstrated Duke's cohesiveness on the river and off.
"The novices usually tend to be separate [from the varsity]," said Hawkins' partner, second-year letter-winner Maren Betts-Sonstegard. "But now it's hard to tell the difference between who's rowed before and who hasn't."
Horner had already eliminated the usual division with the automatic inclusion of the recruits in the varsity eight boats.
"It's going to be an interesting season because we do have more freshmen," Horner said. "But it's a good mix of talent and experience."
Duke opens competition against UNC March 4 in Chapel Hill. The Blue Devils dominated the Tar Heels Oct. 9 at the first-ever Lake Michie Invitational, taking three out of five races.
Then the Blue Devils' schedule gets interesting. Races against Clemson and Northeastern in March are followed by the San Diego Classic and a Washington, D.C., matchup with George Washington and Georgetown.
This year also marks the inaugural season of women's rowing in the ACC.
"We're looking to elevate our level of performance," Horner said.
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