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67 T he University of Iowa rowing program and first-year head coach Andrew Carter got off to a promising start in the season opener hosted by Clemson on March 22. The Hawkeyes competed well in competition against No. 18 Clemson, No. 20 Duke, Kansas and Purdue. The UI defeated Duke — who finished third at the ACC Championships a year ago — in two-of-three NCAA events, and narrowly missed wins over Clemson crews — which finished second in the ACC Championships in 2013. The 2V8+ finished runner-up with a time of 6:56.42 after being edged by No. 18 Clemson (6.56.00) by less than a second. The 1V4+ event was also a tight race, as the Tigers won the event (7:37.80) and the Hawkeyes finished second (7.38.70). Iowa also placed second in the 1N/3V8+ with a time of 7:18.02 and third in 1V8+ with a 6:55.18 effort. "I think most importantly it shows the team something," Carter said. "This group of women, and those who have come before them at Iowa, have trained hard and what they've struggled with is getting a return on that investment. I think they're finally starting to get some return on their investment and its creating momentum. It's helping them buy in more, helping them believe in themselves, and helping them believe in the system. Hopefully, we're going to see that snowball." Iowa earned its first Big Ten Boat of the Week (2V4+) nod since April 15, 2008. Junior Rachel Crosley, freshman Kasie Gniatczyk, freshman Bec Clayton, sophomore Skylar McSorley and sophomore coxswain Rachel Chambers competed for Iowa in the 2V4+ boat. The group placed first with a 7:40.600 effort, besting the runner-up Kansas crew by nearly 12 seconds (7:52.500). Duke (7:56.570), Clemson A (7:57.660) and Clemson B (8:39.440) rounded out the event placing third, fourth and fifth, respectively. Carter is pleased with the Hawkeyes' effort in training, preseason and in the first event of the season. He is excited to see where the team will go from here. "I thought (our first competition) was pretty successful," Carter said. "We'll start to have a clearer picture of where we're at after we've competed against some crews that we race against. We'll see them cross over with other programs that have historically been strong." The Hawkeyes return to action April 5-6 at the San Diego Crew Classic. The annual event includes approximately 4,400 athletes from more than 125 universities, clubs, and high schools from the United States. Athletes, ranging in age from 14-84 years, compete in more than 100 races in various divisions. A Step in the Right Direction By JIL PRICE