April 18, 2013
Complete Release 
Cougars Head to the California Capital for Lake Natoma Invitational:
The Washington State University women's rowing team, currently ranked 17th in the country, will compete at the 2013 Lake Natoma Invitational in Gold River, Calif., Saturday, April 20 and Sunday, April 21. Saturday's events will begin at 8 a.m. PT on Lake Natoma. The Cougars travel to California after competing in a dual regatta with Washington, April 12 at Wawawai Landing in Pullman where WSU's varsity four boats defeated their Husky counterparts.
The 2013 Lake Natoma Invitational:
The Lake Natoma Invitational, hosted by the University of California and Sacramento State University, is held on Lake Natoma in Gold River, Calif., at the Sacramento State Aquatic Center...the 2,000-meter race will feature three-boat heats both Saturday morning and afternoon...coaches of each team will place each team in one of three heats...points will be awarded based on finish...the top three teams in each event will advance to the grand final Sunday morning, with the next three competing in the petite final, and the other three competing in a third race...nine crews will be competing at this year's Lake Natoma Invitational...the competing crews include No. 1 USC, No. 2 California, No. 9 Stanford, No. 12 Notre Dame, No. 15 Wisconsin, No. 17 Washington State Sacramento State, Kansas, and Tulsa...six of the nine schools, including WSU, are currently ranked in the USRowing/CRCA Top-20 poll.
Last Time at the Lake Natoma Invitational:
The Cougars' competed at the Lake Natoma Invitational, April 15, 2012 , making their third appearance at the event...Washington State's varsity eight, second varsity eight and varsity four all qualified for the Group B Final, while the novice boat qualified for the grand final...winning its event was the varsity four with a time of 7:29, beating Brown and Texas...as the only team to qualify for the grand final, the novice eight finished in third place, ahead of Texas, with a time of 6:58.8...the varsity eight and second varsity eight each finished ahead of Texas in second place in their respective B final.
WSU Head Coach Jane LaRiviere on the Lake Natoma Invitational:
"It is a great field with some good out-of-conference comparisons. There are five teams in the top-15, so there are a lot of opportunities to make those most important races happen when they count the most. We hope to build on the races we have had and get a little better every week out. "
Last Time on the Water:
The No. 19 Cougars faced a stern test last Friday, April 12 against No. 6 Washington when both teams launched into the Snake River's calm conditions at Wawawai Landing...the Cougars' varsity four and second varsity four defeated their Husky counterparts in the varsity four event with times of 7:24.14 and 7:38.87...in the second varsity event, the Washington State third varsity four out-stroked Washington's third varsity four with a time of 7:42.7.
Cougs Ranked 17th in USRowing/CRCA Poll:
WSU is currently ranked 17th in the nation in the USRowing/Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) Division I Poll presented by Pocock Racing Shells, moving up two spots from last week....six of the Pac-12's seven rowing squads are ranked in the top-20 poll; USC-first, Cal-second, UCLA-fifth, Washington-sixth, Stanford-ninth, WSU-17th; and Oregon State received two votes...Washington State finished sixth in the conference and ranked 17th at the end of 2012...the Cougars return five rowers from last season's varsity eight boat.
Coaching Staff:
Jane LaRiviere is in her 11th year as head coach of the WSU women's rowing program...the Cougars have raced in six NCAA Championships under LaRiviere...she is joined by assistant Josh Adam, and novice coach Corrie McGrath...Adam is in his third year after coaching his prior two years at Indiana...McGrath is in her fifth year at WSU, after coaching stints at Clemson and Central Florida.
