Michigan rowing team to host Cavaliers

Believe it or not, Michigan has a rowing team. And it's pretty good, too.

The No. 8 Wolverines have their first home meet of the spring season, a double-dual meet, Saturday at Belleville Lake at 11 a.m. They will face off against North Carolina in the morning and Virginia in the afternoon.

Virginia should pose the biggest challenge to the Wolverines - the Cavaliers were ranked third in the nation in the preseason. But Michigan already beat Virginia once this year, two weeks ago at the Lexus Invitational in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

"We were able to beat them two weeks ago and we're expecting to do it again," Michigan coach Mark Rothstein said. "But they're going to come out strong."

What Virginia lacks in strength, it makes up for in depth.

NCAA rowing has three different events. The varsity eight features an eight-man boat - called a shell - plus a coxswain, and pits the strongest eight from each school against each other over a 2,000-meter course. The second varsity eight race runs the same setup as the first varsity eight - an eight-man shell plus a coxswain over a 2,000 meter course - but it pits the second-strongest eight against each other. Often compared to a junior varsity shell, it is a good measure of a team's depth. Finally, the varsity four is a smaller, four-man shell race, in which the individual is more important - if someone messes up in a varsity four, it is more likely to cause a bigger problem than in an eight-man boat.

"Each of the three counts towards our goal," Rothstein said, "which is to qualify for nationals."

At the Lexus Invitational, the Wolverines won the varsity eight by 3.0 seconds, but dropped the second varsity eight to the Cavaliers.

"They have a lot of depth," Rothstein said. "They are a strong program with a good coach."

The Tar Heels should not cause much of a threat to Michigan.

"They're a young program, but they're coming out very fast," Rothstein said. "It should be a good race."

The Tar Heels are in their first-ever season as a varsity team, and have had just one meet - the Lexus Invitational. Michigan beat out the Tar Heels in all three races.

One of the most important members of each boat is the only one who's not doing any physical work - the coxswain. The coxswain acts as an in-shell coach, directing strokes, steering and controlling the pace of the team. She sits at the back of the shell and is the only member of the team who actually faces forward.

The Wolverines' coxswains are Belinda Koo in the varsity eight shell, Claudia Lopez in the second varsity eight and Marcie Klein in the varsity four.

Ohio State will also be at the meet, but will not face Michigan. The Buckeyes, however, will face both North Carolina and Virginia.

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