IU heads to distant waters

When the Hoosiers head out to Camden, N.J., for the Knecht Cup this weekend, it will be their first trip out East in three years. The two-day event will feature over 50 different schools from all over the country. \nSophomore Ashley Quinn said she thinks there is some added pressure from rowing on the East Coast against so many quality opponents.\n"There's going to be a lot of good schools we usually don't race against," she said. "The East Coast is good."\nAfter seeing improvement in its first two regattas of the season, the team is hoping for more positive results this weekend. Senior Danielle Bird, a member of the varsity eight, said she thinks the team is ready for the level of competition this weekend.\n"We've been gradually improving," she said. "The Midwest is tough and I think we're strong enough. It just matters how well you do."\nSenior Stephanie Mast said she agrees and added she expects some good races this weekend.\n"I think the past two weeks we've gotten better and better," she said. "Things are falling together for us right now. I think it should be pretty fair. We've seen these teams before and we know what they're doing. They are the same type of schools as us."\nTo help the team gain extra experience, coach Mark Wilson will be having most of the team row in multiple races. The team will be rowing a varsity quad and two varsity pairs for the first time this season. Bird said she is nervous, but not intimidated by the added races.\n"I'm excited. There's lots of races this weekend," she said. "The first race will be the most important, but we're also rowing in some pairs and fours. I'm a little nervous because the smaller boats don't have much practice. The nerves are starting to come through."\nAfter seeing so much improvement in the first few weeks of the season, the team began practicing in smaller boats, such as the quad and the pair. It spent the rest of the time refining the stroke for this weekend. Quinn said the team has used practice this week to tweak its race plan.\n"We've been practicing quicker catches on the stroke, and making sure we can apply pressure at the right time," she said. "The quads don't have any 2,000-meter race experience yet this season. We haven't really practiced it until this week. It will be interesting but fun."\nMast said she expects the team to gain a lot of experience this weekend.\n"We've been focusing on some smaller boats because we'll be racing a lot more this weekend," she said. "I think it will give us a lot more experience in the long run."\nThe Knecht Cup will take place April 12 and 13 on the Cooper River in Camden, N.J.