Women's crew rows their way to first place

The women's rowing team kicked off their season by hosting the fifth annual Lemon Head Regatta Saturday. The day was highlighted by the Hoosiers' Novice 4 finishing in first place and the Varsity Eight taking third. \nSenior team captain Becky England was part of the Varsity Eight Indiana A team, which tied for third with a time of 16:53. Louisville and Purdue finished first and second, respectively. England said she felt her team rowed well. \n"We felt good today," England said in a statement. "Considering that this is only the second day on the water that we have rowed with a full eight, we did a good job, and I think that today has built our confidence for the season."\nThe Varsity Eight B crew finished fifth with a time of 17:53. \nThe Hoosiers other team of rowers, the Novice 4, beat out John Carroll University with a time of 20:36 to take first place. Novice head coach Angela Leone said she was happy with how the boat rowed.\n"I am very pleased with the Novice 4 team, especially since they have only rowed in the four for one week," Leone said in a statement. "Lauren Anderson made the switch from her original position of the boat to the opposite side. She has done a great job leading the Novice 4 in the stroke position. Lauren Wharen also did a great job sticking to the race plan."\nSophomore Amanda Tallman was part of the Novice 4.\n"I feel that we had a strong performance today," Tallman said in a statement. "We competed better than we expected to. For the regatta next weekend, we need to focus on our run (recovery time) and strengthen our legs."\nThe Varsity 4 team finished third with a time of 18:53. Louisville placed first with a time of 18:02, and Purdue finished second with a time of 18:11. Senior Danielle Bird and sophomore Ashley Quinn finished third in the pairs event with a time of 21:29. They finished behind Louisville A (19:50) and Louisville B (20:03).\nCoach Mark Wilson said he was pleased with how the team rowed, but said there is room for improvement.\n"Overall, things went well for us," Wilson said. "I would have liked for the Varsity 8's time to be closer to the first place finisher's time. I feel that we are in a good position though; we have only been in the eights for a week. I really can't ask for too much more. The team did a great job of bringing everyone together"