By Cris Majors

   The University of Louisville women’s rowing team opened its 2005 spring season against No. 24-ranked Minnesota and lost all four races. The Cards challenged the Gophers in Oak Ridge, Tenn., on March 13.

The Louisville crew lost the Varsity 8+ race to Minnesota with a time of 6:41.53, less than two seconds behind the Minnesota boat. The Cards were nearly as close in the second Varsity 8+ race: U of L’s time of 7:02.51 was just behind the Gophers’ 6:59.21 finish. In the Varsity 4+ race, the Gophers finished with a time of 7:48.15, followed by the Gophers’ “B” crew with a time of 7:56.98. The Cards finished with a time of 8:03.46. The Gophers won the final race of the day, the Novice 8+ race, with a time of 7:15.35. The Cards trailed with a time of 7:42.86.

Despite the four losses, Louisville trailed by a few seconds in every race against a nationally ranked powerhouse. U of L head rowing coach Richard Ruggieri said the Louisville team is the fastest it has ever been on paper, which will hopefully transfer to the water.

U of L rows against some of the top 20 rowing teams in the nation, including No. 10-ranked Tennessee and No. 16-ranked Notre Dame. During the Central/Southern Regional Sprints in May, U of L will compete against 10 of the top 20 teams in the country.

Since U of L rowing is one of the premier up-and-coming rowing programs in the nation, every team during weekend competitions is considered a big rival, especially Indiana University and Murray State University due to their relatively close location to Louisville. U of L’s rivalry with MSU draws a large crowd of nearly 2,000 spectators to the banks of the Ohio River during their annual dual at the Derby Festival Rowing Championship, which takes place May 1 at the U of L boathouse.

“The competition builds community support of U of L rowing and is a great opportunity to see us race,” Ruggieri said.

When asked if there are any standout rowers on the team to keep an eye on during this spring season, Ruggieri replied, “We are only as good as a group. There are no holes in this team.” Ruggieri admitted some rowers may be better athletes than others, but he emphasized that rowing is the ultimate team sport.

Although Louisville rowing competes during the fall season, the competition during the spring season is important because it counts towards NCAA rowing. The spring competition consists primarily of dual- and tri-meets, with competition in 2,000-meter sprints.

The Cards next compete on Saturday against Tennessee in Knoxville.