Rowing Heads to Clemson for Tiger Invite
CLEMSON, S.C. – The University of Miami women’s rowing team will race at the Tiger Invitational on Lake Hartwell this weekend.
The regatta begins Saturday morning and will span two days. The 18-team field at the Tiger Invitational features seven teams ranked in the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association/USRowing national poll. Defending NCAA Champion Virginia, who is ranked No. 3 in the latest CRCA/USRowing poll, highlights the talented group of teams scheduled to compete, along with No. 4 Ohio State and No. 5 UCLA.
Miami and Virginia will be joined on the waters of Lake Hartwell by ACC rivals Clemson and Duke. The Tiger Invitational marks the first time in 2013 that Miami will directly race against an ACC opponent and the only opportunity before the ACC Championships on May 12.
The Canes will boat crews in the First Varsity 8+, Second Varsity 8+, Varsity 4+ and Novice 8+ divisions during each of the three distinct and separate rounds of racing. Miami and the rest of the ACC schools competing in the Tiger Invitational will gain valuable experience racing on Lake Hartwell, the site of this year’s ACC Championships.
The 1V8+ has led the Canes so far this season and is riding a wave of success heading into Clemson this weekend. Miami’s top squad is coming off a big victory April 7 at the San Diego Crew Classic.
While the 1V8+ brought home the Cal Cup in its last racing action, Miami head rowing coach Andrew Carter is looking for all of his boats to show improvement this weekend.
“The 1V has been doing really well and they continue to improve daily, so every time they go to the line, I’m all in,” Carter said. “However, what’s been really exciting during our preparation for Clemson is the progression of our 2V crew. We made some changes there that have sparked something and they’ve had an excellent few days of training in Miami Beach, so to say that I’m ‘all in’ for their race this weekend would be an understatement.”
Following the success of the first and second Varsity 8+’s at the San Diego Crew Classic, the Tiger Invitational will be the first time that the Canes Varsity 4+ and Novice 8+ will be testing their speed since the Cardinal Invitational in late March.
“The 4+ lineup is only a couple of days old because we’ve been able to get a couple of women back from injury, so I’m keen to see them on the race course” Carter said. “They’ve been pushing this week and they have their team behind them so, I’m interested to see how they respond in the racing moment.”
All races at the Tiger Invitational will be streamed live and fans can click here to watch all the action.
For official updates and more information on Hurricanes rowing, visit HurricaneSports.com.
