Now that we are full steam into January, teams are travelling for their training trips and back into the erg room for another gruelling winter. Who came out of the fall looking poised for a great spring season? And who came out with a chip on their shoulder?
Division I:
Yale University
The first one to watch must be the repeat winner of the Head of the Charles championship women’s eight collegiate pennant, Yale, who placed second overall and quite close to the victorious Leander. Despite demonstrating early season strength every year, Yale seem to falter in recent years regarding the championship season. The team, led by Coach Will Porter for the good part of the last three decades, will undoubtedly be hoping for a stronger result this year as they head down to Clemson, South Carolina for their annual Winter training trip. Their first race will be the Ivy / Big-10 Dust-Up, seeing the bulldogs face their Mid-West counterparts, Ohio State and Michigan. With a few key players back from an Olympic gap year, including silver medallist in the Canadian eight Maya Meschkuleit and Greek pair rower Christina Bourmpou, this might be Yale’s best shot to go all the way.
University of Washington
Although Washington has slipped in recent years from their peak days of sweeping the NCAAs in 2019, their brilliant Charles performance might just indicate that they are hungry for more this year. Travelling across the country from Seattle to Boston to make the famous journey up the Charles River, UW’s varsity finished third overall (second in collegiate), and their 2V finished just behind and ahead of many top programs’ varsity boats. Coach Yaz Farooq, in her ninth season with the Huskies, undoubtedly made the best choice bringing the team to the Charles, and this momentum will take them through to the first spring race at San Diego Crew Classic, knowing that they might have something great brewing.
University of Texas – Austin
The reigning NCAA champions, Texas, are back on the water for the winter training “trip” at home. Texas have built up quite the legacy over the past five years, and the pressure has yet to get to them. With the privilege of warmer weather coming earlier than their East Coast rivals, Texas are in a great position to capitalize on their momentum and come out of the gates full steam ahead. Although Texas has lost a few key players, like the 2024 cox-stroke duo of Carly Legenzowski and Mette Koechs-Nielsen, losing graduates has never slowed the Longhorns’ momentum. Unlike many other top programs, Texas opts for an autumn filled with training miles instead of head races and, in turn, keeps its cards close to its chest on speed. Will this strategy pay off for them again?
Stanford
Always ones to watch, Stanford has only once since COVID been able to push past their Longhorn rivals to nab first at the NCAAs. In 2025, after losing just a handful of graduates, Stanford will hope to row back against the tide. As they will not be attending the San Diego Crew Classic this year, Stanford’s first test will be on March 29th against Tennessee, which could be the hottest race of the early season if last year’s results are any indication. If you don’t have plans on this day, make sure this race is on your calendar.
Princeton University
For the past few years, Princeton has sat on the edge of greatness, finishing a disappointing fourth at the 2024 NCAAs. At Charles, they finished an entire 15 seconds behind their rivals from New Haven, and three seconds ahead of Brown. They will be encouraged, however, by knowing that the Charles has historically meant nothing in terms of spring season results. This is quite a young team from Princeton – which included a freshman sitting at stroke for the Charles – and Coach Lori Dauphiny will be looking to channel this youthful energy in bringing Princeton over that edge and into the glory they’ve long been chasing. Their first test will be against Brown on March 29th on home turf.
Brown University
Big news out of Providence came last August when former coaching John and Phoebe Murphy retired from leading the Bears after 40 and 38 seasons, respectively. The noise out of Brown was that the team was anxious following this announcement – which seemed a long time coming – but has since settled following a fall season no different than the rest, ending three seconds behind their Princeton rivals. Coach Tessa Gabbo, a Brown alum from 2013 and an Olympic gold medallist from Rio 2016 in the US Women’s eight, has stepped into the Murphy’s shoes and looks poised to take the team to the next level.
University of Tennessee
After what could potentially be the fastest turnaround from not qualifying for the NCAAs to making the podium in NCAA women’s rowing history, Tennessee hopes to only build on that momentum. All eyes will undoubtedly be on the Lady Vols to see if they will deliver or falter. Coach Kim Cupini, who led the Lady Vols on their remarkable rise, is back again to ensure her team continues batting in the major leagues among Texas and Stanford. They, too, opt for a low-key Head season, with their eyes on spring instead.
Division III:
In DIII, Tufts had an impressive, victorious Charles in the women’s collegiate eight event, proving their win at NCAAs was not a fluke. They will be the top DIII program to watch. Wesleyan and Williams are right on their tails, and Trinity College – Hartford, who ended with bronze in 2024, seemed slightly off the pace this fall.
About The Author
Discover more from JRN
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
