By Gabrielle Duncan

The University of Louisville rowing team often goes unrecognized on campus, but this season they are preparing and training to change that, hoping to seize their first Big East Championship.

The rowing team is comprised of four different crews that compete separately. This includes the varsity eight crew, the varsity four crew, the second varsity eight crew, and the novice crew.

The Cardinals, ranked No. 29 in preseason, have begun their racing season with positive results. They traveled to Austin, Texas over spring break for the Longhorn Invitational. All four crews swept the Kansas State University Wildcats. The varsity eight crew also came away with a narrow victory over the No. 10 University of Wisconsin Badgers.

“They all learned a lot from the racing weekend,” said Laura Aubrey, head coach of the rowing team. “For a young group of ladies, they really matured quickly over those four days in Texas.”

The following weekend, the rowers traveled to face No. 16 the University of Tennessee. The Cardinal varsity eight crew came up with another close win, defeating the Volunteers. Two of the novice four boats also found victory against the Tennessee novice crew.

“That was a very sweet victory, certainly for the seniors,” said Aubrey. “There’s a lot of seniors and a lot of experience in the varsity eight. It feels good to beat a very good crew in Tennessee. So obviously the speed of the [varsity eight] is moving very well.”

Sophomore varsity eight rower Erin Bennett said she has noticed the progress the team has made so far.

“We have been seeing improvements,” said Bennett. “And I think that we will continue to see improvements as the season goes on and we get more races in.”

The Cards’ current season success is aided by the recently built Garvin Brown III Rowing Center. The state-of-the-art facility includes everything from indoor rowing machines to rowing tanks. According to Aubrey, the new training center has been a boost for team morale.

“They have all been waiting for a place to call their own,” said Aubrey. “And anytime you move into a place like this there is a new energy. There’s a great deal of pride that goes into having a place of your own. And the girls are very grateful.”

Senior varsity eight rower Anastasia Prokopenko feels this gratitude.

“It’s an amazing facility,” said Prokopenko. “I’ve been here five years. And the new boathouse was promised for so long and then all of a sudden – boom – it was here. And I can’t even believe that I get to use it.”

With a brand new facility to call home, the Cards are focused on one goal: winning the Big East Championship.

“I’m most excited for Big East, definitely,” said Prokopenko. “There’s just this anticipation for all the hard work that we’ve been putting in to pay off for this one race. And that’s what it’s going to come down to.”

The team is taking the season one step at a time, rather than looking ahead to the NCAA national competition.

“For us, we’ve really committed to our Big East Championship,” said Prokopenko. “We feel that if we’re going to be in a position to go to the NCAAs, we have to feel confident about winning our conference championship.”

With the help of the singular goal, the team is staying motivated and focused on the season, seeking improvement in each boat.

“This year it isn’t even hard to stay focused,” said Prokopenko. “Everybody has their eyes on the goal. There is just this passion and desire to win Big East. And we’ve been hungry for it for so long.”

Aubrey is satisfied with her team’s dedication and determination to reach their goals.

“It is a really internally, intrinsically motivated group of people,” said Aubrey. “We don’t do it for the grand stands. We don’t do it for the crowds…We do it for one another.”

The Cards will next travel to Columbus, Ohio to compete against Ohio State University and Indiana University on April 9.