Rowing team splits for weekend meets

This weekend, the women's rowing team will be sending boats to two different regattas. The varsity eight left Thursday for Boston for the Head of the Charles Regatta while the rest of the team will be headed to Indianapolis Saturday for the Head of the Eagle Regatta.\nSophomore Meredith De Costa said the team has been progressing well since the last regatta.\n"As a team, we have been progressing, with each catch, swing, and pull, to become stronger," De Costa said in a statement. "After recovering from racing this past weekend, we really focused on putting every ounce of strength and technique into the boat. We are really pulling some fast numbers, and I hope this shows this weekend."\nDe Costa is part of the varsity eight that will be rowing in the Head of the Charles.\n"The Head of the Charles is the largest two-day regatta in the world with over 300,000 spectators," De Costa said in a statement. "The key for us is to stay focused, relaxed and know that this is the opportunity of a lifetime and our best chance to let IU crew shine."\nThe Head of the Charles is a racecourse features numerous turns, including a sharp left turn towards the end of the race. The Head of the Charles will host some of the best competition from around the world, and it's a good place for the Hoosiers to view some of the competition from the East and West coast.\nThe rest of the team will be looking forward to a strong performance at the Head of the Eagle. Last year at the Head of the Eagle, the second varsity eight placed second in the open eight and the novice four also finished second.\n"The novice eight really focused on timing and catching together," freshman Barrett Belstra said in a statement.\nJunior Line Espedal, a member of the varsity eight, headed to Boston for the Head of the Charles, said they will be successful with some hard work and focus.\n"We need to focus on making every single stroke perfect and work together to achieve this," Espedal said in a statement. "The only way we can improve as a team is if we work hard everyday as a team. We have kept working on our technique and rowing efficiency and powerfully. I think that we have made some good improvements in the past few weeks"