Mielle Hubbard, Guest Writer
This year the women’s rowing team has made some big changes with the introduction of Andrew Foltz as head coach, new oar designs and a new way to raise money.
“[Foltz] has pushed our team to set higher goals for ourselves, and the brand new training regiment he has set us on has made those goals realistically reachable,” said senior Hallie Peterson.
The team is using crowdfunding. This is a way of fundraising by creating a website and asking people across the internet to support a project through donation to buy new equipment.
They have used USEED, a website that supports colleges raising money for its various programs’ needs.
“[Our campaign], along with the NicarAGUA project, is paving the way for programs and groups at PLU to raise money through an incredibly easy way to share an idea or a goal that needs financial support,” Foltz said. “I feel like we are incredibly lucky to have gotten this opportunity.”
The rowing team hopes to raise enough money to buy a new set of oars.
“It’s so exciting that we get to promote our new program through crowdfunding and educate our family and friends about who we are and what we do,” sophomore Ticia Hackney said.
On the water, these ladies have put in more than two hours a day to prepare for their regattas. On April 11, the two boats won all four of its races, and on April 19 the team traveled to Vancouver, Wash., and placed third in the Northwestern Conference Championship.
“We’ve been taking it up a level this year, and it has really shown in our recent races,” senior Savannah Schneider said.
They just returned from Sacramento, Calif., where they raced against schools from California, Oregon and Arizona in the Western Intercollegiate Rowing Association regatta, and are now preparing to race at the Meyer Lamberth competition on May 2.
With their sights set to compete at the national level after this weekend, the women’s team is reaching its goals, one stroke at a time.
