George Washington University Athletics
Crew Spring 2000 Season Outlook
12/14/1999 12:00:00 AM | Crew
The challenge facing the 2000 men's and women's crews will be to build upon the success of recent years. On the women's side, our goal this year is to qualify again for the NCAA Championships and take a shot at the national title, states Head Coach Steve Peterson. To qualify for the NCAA's, the women will have to defeat such regional rivals as Cornell, Georgetown, Princeton and Virginia and race well in the Eastern Sprints Regatta.
Expectations are high for the women in 2000. With more than three 8's worth of varsity oarswomen on the roster, the competition for the varsity boat will be fierce. Peterson adds, This is an ideal situation for a coach and rowing program. We have a large group of dedicated athletes who are all working hard to be in the top boat. The end result in this type of situation is always going to be a lot of fast crews, winning a lot of races.
On the men's side, a young team returns under new leadership. Coach [Gene] Kininmonth has brought with him a great deal of technical knowledge and success, and he has the men already rowing at a much higher level in a short period of time, Peterson says.
This year's varsity has turned into a nice surprise. The guys are bigger and are already physically stronger than last year's varsity. I think they will surprise a lot of crews and prove to be a real force in men's rowing in the future. A tough schedule and a return trip to the IRA's will make the presence of the GW men felt around the country. Looking ahead to the 2000 spring season, the GW men are hoping a mix of youth and experience will keep GW varsity men competitive. For the freshmen, the best recruiting class GW has seen in years promises to bring a continued wealth of talent to the program for the future.
