After a successful performance at the Lake Natoma Invitational last week, this weekend the Irish head to Bloomington, Ind. for the Dale England Cup.
The No. 12 Irish are ready to get back on the water and race again, junior Molly Bruggeman said.
"Coming off a great weekend in California, I think the team has some momentum going into racing," Bruggeman said. "We had a successful weekend on the West Coast and now we're ready to get back on the water after about a week away from it."
The Irish finished the Lake Natoma Invitational in a third place tie with No. 9 Stanford. The Irish landed just two points behind No. 1 USC and one point behind No. 2 California. Even though the Irish had a strong finish at the competition, the team is still looking to improve, Bruggeman said.
"We always look to improve on every race we have and each racing experience gives us another chance to see what we can do," Bruggeman said.
Improvement takes practice, though, and Bruggeman said the St. Joe's River's conditions have impeded the team's practice schedule.
"Unfortunately the river has been abnormally high this week and we haven't been able to go out since we finished racing on Sunday," Bruggeman said.
Despite the unfortunate conditions, the Irish have found alternative ways to prepare for the regatta this weekend, Bruggeman said.
"We have been working out on the ergometer or rowing machines and relying on previous weeks of training to prepare us for this weekend," Bruggeman said.
With the season coming to an end, the Irish have sighted the Big East Championship on the horizon. The conference title will be up for grabs in Mercer County, N.J. on May 19.
With this in mind, the Irish are looking forward to the great competition they are to face in the upcoming weeks, Bruggeman said.
"The team is excited to finish the regular season strong, and we hope it pays off by earning ourselves a bid to the NCAAs," Bruggeman said.
Before looking that far ahead, the team still has races to worry about this weekend.
"This weekend is an opportunity for three more races in which we can learn from," Bruggeman said.
The Irish get back on the water at the Dale England Cup in Bloomington, Ind. on Friday and Saturday.
