Rowing competes in South Carolina starting Friday

WSU faces many ranked opponents in upcoming Clemson Invitational

WSU%E2%80%99s+varsity+four+earned+second+place+behind+Oregon+State+March+24+on+the+Snake+River.+WSU%E2%80%99s+final+time+was+7%3A35.74.+The+Cougars+will+travel+to+South+Carolina+to+compete+in+the+Clemson+Invitational+starting+Friday.

PAIGE CAMPBELL | DAILY EVERGREEN FILE

WSU’s varsity four earned second place behind Oregon State March 24 on the Snake River. WSU’s final time was 7:35.74. The Cougars will travel to South Carolina to compete in the Clemson Invitational starting Friday.

LEXI MCGONEGLE, Evergreen reporter

WSU rowing will continue its spring season at the Clemson Invitational on Lake Hartwell Friday and Saturday in Clemson, South Carolina.

This will be the Cougars’ second spring competition away from home after the San Diego Crew Classic where the second varsity four took home the gold with a time of 8:08.635. The varsity four placed second and the varsity eight and second varsity eight placed sixth.

Last year at the Clemson Invitational the Cougars placed sixth overall and its third varsity eight had the best finish placing second. The Cougars first varsity eight placed sixth and the second varsity eight placed seventh in their respective “A” Finals.

Head Coach Jane LaRiviere said the team worked hard to improve their speed this season. With the NCAA Championships right around the corner, the Cougars have been perfecting the boat selections to maximize performance.

The seventh-annual Clemson Invitational will include 21 teams with 9 conferences represented. The schools are seeded into heats across two sessions and their performance will be the deciding factor for the final heats.

The Cougars will face talented ranked competition including No. 10 Virginia, No. 12 Wisconsin, No. 17 Duke, No.18 Oregon State and No. 20 Alabama. WSU varsity eight will kick off the Cougars race Friday morning.

LaRiviere is excited about the upcoming meet and thinks her team is prepared.

“Practices have been going well,” LaRiviere said. “The team is ready to race and we are excited to test our speed against all the great out of conference competition.”

Racing will begin at 8:30 a.m. Friday and Saturday on Lake Hartwell and will take place over a 2,000-meter course. To get live updates of the regatta, visit the Clemson rowing Twitter account.