Cougar Rowing Opens Spring Season at Spokane: No. 10 Washington State rowing will compete in its first races of the 2015-16 spring season against No. 19 Gonzaga at Silver Lake...racing will begin at 3 p.m. and the Cougars' final race of the day will begin at 4:15 p.m.
The 2016 Gonzaga Dual: Racing begins at 3 p.m. with the second varsity four...the varsity four race is slated for 3:15 p.m. followed by the second varsity eight at 3:30 p.m., the varsity eight at 3:45 p.m., and the third varsity eight at 4 p.m...the regatta concludes with the novice eight and fourth varsity eight at 4:15 p.m.
Last Year Against Gonzaga: Last season on the Snake River, the Washington State varsity eight won its eighth-consecutive Fawley Cup, out-stroking Gonzaga by seven seconds...WSU won each of the events against Gonzaga...the varsity four finished 27 seconds ahead of the Bulldog crew, and the second varsity eight won by nearly 20 seconds...the Cougars' novice eight boat finished ahead of WSU's third varsity eight, GU's third varsity eight, and the Gonzaga novice eight in the final race.
WSU Head Coach Jane LaRiviere on the Start of the 2016 Season: “The training has been good so far, we are suitably ready to race. We have been back on the water since February 1 with fairly good weather conditions. It is time to test-drive what we have been working on. With the things we can measure, I have been feeling optimistic about the upcoming season. Our seniors have done a great job. They are not a loud bunch, but they have put the work in and their quiet leadership has helped the team come together. There is a lot of been there done that mentality and good consistency all around.”
WSU Head Coach Jane LaRiviere on Gonzaga: “Gonzaga is always excellent competition. We look forward to lining up with them on Friday and seeing how it goes. Gonzaga swept Oregon State in all five events and they were in the preseason poll coming in at No. 18. Gonzaga is not to be taken lightly, I think this will be a great matchup. We can sleep in our beds the day before then get on a bus and go row on Friday. We are ready and excited to test ourselves early in the season.”
Cougars Ranked 10th in USRowing/CRCA Poll: WSU is currently ranked 10th in the nation in the USRowing/Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) Division I Poll presented by Pocock Racing Shells...Washington State checks in at No. 10 after coming in at ninth in the preseason poll...WSU is ranked for the 80th-consecutive week, dating back to June 11, 2008...five Pac-12 women's rowing teams are ranked in the top-20 poll: California-second, Washington-fifth, Stanford-ninth, WSU-10th, and USC-14th...California received three first-place votes.
Coaching Staff: Jane LaRiviere is in her 14th year as head coach of the WSU women's rowing program...LaRiviere led the Cougars to their 10th NCAA Championship appearance in program history last season and fifth in six years....she is joined by associate head coach Josh Adam, assistant/novice coach Karl Huhta, coordinator of operations Sam Hoeper and graduate assistant Brandon Campbell...Adam is in his sixth year after coaching his prior two years at Indiana... Huhta is in his second year at WSU and fourth year overall, he spent last season as the coordinator of operations after being a volunteer coach in 2009-10…Hoeper enters her first season as the coordinator of operations after rowing at Washington State from 2010-13…Campbell enters his first season as a graduate assistant after graduating from Brock University in 2015…the coaching staff was named the CRCA West Regional Staff of the Year in 2015.
Next up for the Cougars: The Cougars will take part in the 43rd San Diego Crew Classic, April 2-3 on Mission Bay at San Diego, Calif.