The women's crew team is confident that last year's fifth-place finish at Div. III Nationals was not an aberration. And the team certainly has the tools to prove it.
Carrying a group of 13 seniors and six juniors, Tufts has no shortage of experience to land its team at Nationals for a second-straight year.
"We're all really excited to get back into the season," junior Sara Douglass said. "We do have a fall season, but the spring is why we row. It's our time to show how hard we worked. We definitely have a strong senior class that knows what it's like to go as far as we went last year, which is definitely going to help the team."
The fall campaign culminated in a 16th-place finish for the first varsity eight at the Head of the Charles - one of the most anticipated events of the year. Racing against some of the best national and international programs, the team was able to gauge its skills heading into the spring and give the younger members a glimpse of the type of competition they will encounter if they want to outdo last season's success.
"Especially for the sophomores who moved up from novice, it's definitely an adjustment," junior Laura Sherman said. "[The fall was] a chance for them to improve their rowing and apply all that they learned."
Coach Gary Caldwell's squad will put its skills to the test on Saturday when it hosts Wellesley, and possibly Tulane and Vermont as well, on the Malden River, a match-up that last year vaulted the team into its successful 2006 season.
With a sizeable team this year, the Jumbos will race three varsity eights and a varsity four, which will combine with the novice four this weekend to create a fourth varsity eight, still keeping the necessary equal number of rowers on port and starboard. As well as having a deep squad, the group has a lot of technical talent and strength, making for a potent combination that could very well land the team back on the national stage.
Despite the Jumbos' high aspirations, they aren't feeling any external pressure to perform.
"There is definitely pressure to do as well as last year, but if anything, it's self-pressure, and it will just make us work harder," Sherman said. "Our coach wants us to do well, but we don't really discuss NCAAs. We just put pressure on ourselves to do as well as we can."
The Jumbos have spent the last two weeks fine-tuning their techniques and adjusting to the water. The team spent spring break in Sarasota, Fla., practicing in the morning, working out midday, and fluctuating between the water and dry land during the later afternoon.
"Going down to Sarasota, Florida, we're on the water twice a day all week," Douglass said. "It gets us out of the cold weather and is a great opportunity for us to get all the kinks out on the water."
The group also raced against some masters programs in Florida last week, which allowed it to experience some less intense competition before the real season begins.
With three workouts a day over the break, and more rigorous training this week, the team should be more than ready when Saturday rolls around.
"This week is really tough, because it's our first full week on the water, and we're just trying to get back into action," Sherman said. "We're still putting together the pieces to make the fastest combinations."
Racing on the Malden River for the first three competitions of the season, the Jumbos will be able to ease into the 2007 season in the comfort of their own boathouse. With seven regattas separating the team from Nationals, Tufts is determined to take it one race at a time. Still, the crew can't help but keep its eye on the last date on the schedule, as it is hoping for another chance on the national stage.
Until then, however, all the Jumbos can do is prepare for Saturday, something they have been anticipating since they put down their oars at the end of October.
