Having competed at the Pac-12 championships two weeks ago, UCLA rowing will be surrounded by familiar faces this weekend when it competes at the NCAA championships, where half of the conference will be in attendance.
Along with USC, California, Washington, Washington State and Stanford, No. 6 UCLA heads to Indianapolis, Ind., to compete in its third NCAA championships since 2010.
Considering how recently the Bruins have faced so much of their competition, placing fourth at Pac-12s, coach Amy Fuller Kearney said she hopes her team focuses inward as they prepare for their race.
“There are a lot of really good teams here and if we start worrying about other people, I think that will distract us,” Fuller Kearney said. “We really do have to stay focused.”
This year, the Pac-12 will have a considerably stronger showing in Indianapolis than any other conference – of the 11 at-large bids available to teams from 11 conferences, five went to Pac-12 schools.
As one of those strong Pac-12 schools and having been to the NCAA championships so frequently over the past four years, Fuller Kearney said earning a bid is a standard she now holds her team to rather than something atypical.
“You just have to race to the expectations and so once you make it as a team, then attendance (at the NCAAs) becomes part of our expectation,” she said. “That may get harder and harder, but we’re going to keep getting better and better also.”
But as a school that has only recently emerged as a real competitor in the rowing world, UCLA is in position to shock its competition with a strong performance whereas its reputation won’t suffer with an average finish.
“There’s not too much pressure on us as the UCLA rowing team,” said senior Kirstin Snook. “We want to do well, but there are a lot of teams out there that have reputations to uphold. We’re just trying to gain the respect of other teams – which we’ve been doing – and it’s a nice position to be in.”
Aside from the armada of talented rowers this weekend, UCLA will also battle the elements as wind has picked up in Indianapolis and shows no signs of abating before the competition.
“The conditions out here are really rough, there’s a lot of wind so it’s basically just going to be a race against the elements and who can handle it the best,” said sophomore Alex Caniglia.
And despite having to fight the wind and the five other Pac-12 schools, the team hopes to improve upon its eighth-place finish from last year and send all its boats to grand finals.
“I think our team is going to be happy as long as all of our boats make the grand final,” Caniglia said. “If that happens, I think we’re all going to walk away with our heads held high.”