With much excitement and some bittersweet feelings, the UCLA rowing team is getting ready for its final races of the season at the NCAA championships Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Ranked No. 9, UCLA is ready to leave it all in the water this weekend.
“I’m personally looking forward to seeing all of our hard work pay off,” said sophomore coxswain Logan Warwick.
Competing against the best crews in the country, the Bruins have been working on the skills necessary to perform well since last September.
“At this point there isn’t really any changes that we are trying to make, we just are hoping to have a great race,” said junior stroke Cathy Stolitzka. “We can’t let the rough conditions get to us. It’s all about sending the boat together and giving it everything we have.”
Integrating their traditional meetings before every race, the Bruins are discussing their final race plans as they aim for their best races of the season, said Warwick and senior stroke Erin Wenzel.
With each Bruin bringing her best to the NCAA championship races, the Bruins’ goal is to assist their boats in reaching their full potential, as Warwick indicated. Not only are skills being tested this weekend, but also the Bruins’ ability to cope with difficult weather conditions.
“We are expected to get ninth, that is our current ranking,” Stolitzka said. “Personally I want to move up in the rankings, and I know my boat would love to make it to the grand final. Our technique will help us in the different and difficult weather conditions.”
The NCAA championship races are not just the final races of the season, they are the final races in some of the senior Bruins’ rowing careers. Along with the legacies made, the seniors are aiming to leave the water at Indianapolis with their best performances.
“As a senior, the weekend is bittersweet,” Wenzel said. “I’m proud to see how far the program has come in my four years as an athlete, but I’m sad to see the end of an era. This sport has been a huge part of my life for the last four years and I’m planning on ending my time here on a high note and having the best races of my career.”
For the Bruins, the NCAA championships are a time to showcase their efforts and hard work as well as reflect the dedicated and persistent personalities of the Bruins.
“I would say that in this sport, hard work is met with success and that you get out of it what you invest in it,” Wenzel said. “Being a high-level athlete requires a 24/7 commitment to greatness and requires holding yourself to high standards.”