When the end of a season approaches and the post season is assured, teams tend to rest their key players. However, this is not the case for the Washington State women’s rowing team.

The Cougars will host Oregon State in their only home regatta of the season tomorrow at the Wawawai Landing.

After a rough regatta a few weeks ago the team and will race with its full squad in hopes of building momentum heading into the Pac-12 Championships.

“My expectations are simply to build on the last race,” Head Coach Jane LaRiviere said. “Oregon State has a pretty fast varsity eight, so I think we are going to be challenged all of the way down the course. We certainly cannot take them lightly. Their times were very close to our times at the Clemson Invite.” 

Among the Cougar racers competing in their last home regatta is senior rower Kendall Boliba.

“Coming in as a freshman I had no idea what it took to be a student athlete here,” Boliba said. “I remember my first practice being so hard and thinking, if this is what college rowing is like, I don’t think I’m gonna make it, although here I am four years later.”

Academically, time management and prioritizing helped Boliba turn things around when her grades weren’t to her liking during her freshman year.

On the water, Boliba said the amount of quality rowers on the team has increased.

“I feel like the freshman now have a lot better grasp at it than I did as a freshman,” Boliba said. “The caliber of people we are bringing in has definitely helped with the maturity level because they have a lot of experience coming in. I was definitely a deer in the headlights when I came in my freshman year, I really had no sense of direction. I knew I would try to be successful in my sport and come out with a four-year degree.”

As her career comes to a close, Boliba said her experience with the program has been amazing, and now she will continue to carry her veteran leadership into the final weeks of the season.

“Our coach has no one captain. It is up to everyone to bring something different to the team, and so it’s up to us to make those things happen,” Boliba said. “Everyone has been working so hard this whole season, especially these last couple weeks with Pac-12s and the selection for whose going to nationals is coming up, so everyone is focused and determined. If we do what we’re capable of, there’s going to be some good results this weekend.”

Boliba only has about five races left, and she wants to go in to every race giving it her all, leaving everything on the race course, all while trusting the fitness of the team to get things done with the season’s end.

After graduation, Boliba will return to WSU in the fall. She accepted a graduate assistant position in the developing unit with athletics and will work toward a master’s degree in sports management.

Boliba plans to remain involved with what goes on with the team as a lot of her friends are still with the program.

In the end, Boliba leaves the team with these words of wisdom: “Enjoy it, it goes by fast. I know we have our early morning practices, but after you graduate, you are going to miss those, the team camaraderie, and being a part of something special like that. There’s going to be ups and downs, but just enjoy it.”