Indiana University Athletics
Hoosiers Head to Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championships
4/15/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Rowing
April 15, 2010
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The Indiana rowing team will head to Oak Ridge, Tenn., for the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing (SIRA) Championships, April 17-18, on Melton Lake in a series of 2,000-meter pieces.
The Hoosiers' first Varsity 8 crew is seeded No. 1 in their race on Saturday, which is slated for 12:12 p.m. ET. IU will compete against Alabama, Jacksonville, Oklahoma and Southern Methodist, looking to advance to the final on Sunday afternoon.
"We're very excited about this weekend for a variety of reasons," said IU head coach Steve Peterson. "Number one we'll get a chance to race on the course down at Oak Ridge, which will be where our region championships are so that will help us be a little more prepared down the road. Secondly, with the first Varsity crew seeded first, we'll be racing a great range of schools that we wouldn't normally see."
Indiana's second Varsity 8 crew is slated to race Alabama, Florida, Southern Methodist and Tulsa at 3:12 p.m. on Saturday, with the final schedule for Sunday morning. The Hoosiers first Varsity 4 will also race Alabama, Oklahoma and Southern Methodist, along with Nova Southeastern at 4:29 p.m. on Saturday, with the final also on Sunday morning. IU's first Novice 8 crew will compete against Alabama, Central Oklahoma, Oklahoma, Purdue and Tennessee on Sunday at 10:02 a.m.
"Obviously, our expectations are to perform to the best of our ability," Peterson added. "If we perform the way we can, I think we'll be successful. We've had a great week of practice. The second Varsity, in particular, has made huge improvements all week and they are excited about that."
Following the SIRA and weekend off from racing, the Hoosiers will open the championship season when it competes in the Big Ten Championships on Saturday, May 1 on Lake Ovid at Sleepy Hollow State Park in Laingsburg, Mich.
