Last weekend, the women's rowing team set off for Lake Lanier in Gainesville, Georgia to compete in its first two-day meet, the Head of the Hooch regatta. The team, which has already found success this autumn, nears the end of its fall season looking stronger than ever.
"I feel like we are in a very good place right now," coxswain Sarah Shapiro said. "Our solid racing this fall puts us in an exciting position for the spring. The attitude of the team this year has been more focused and we go about practice every day with a racing mentality. Our new attitudes have definitely made our team faster."
The intensive training and positive attitude helped 10 of the team's crews to finish in the top five last weekend. The crew that took the Champion Eight included Shapiro, Tonia Boock, Alissa Van Arnam, Kim Bailey, Natalie Zervas, Amber Straight, Missy Buckmiller, Julie Stuart and Lauren Case. Duke also took third place in that race, coming in a mere three seconds behind Clemson. Duke's Club Four and the Open 4X crews also took first place, leaving their competition in the wake.
The team, however, has not focused on its accomplishments thus far, but looks to the future with high hopes.
"The depth of the team has greatly improved our speed this season and will continue to push us in the spring," Case said.
The team will face Virginia and other competitive rival teams in a just a few weeks at the Rivanna Romp regatta.
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