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159 W hen they are away from water or the P. Sue Beckwith Boathouse, they are known as Nina, Zoe, Ashley, Kaelynn, Izzy, Cristy, Hannah, Beth, and Katie. But during practice and competition, they are recognized only through the oneness of being members of the University of Iowa 1V8+ boat. No individuals, just eight rowers and a coxswain working in unison. at chemistry nearly led the Hawkeyes to their first NCAA berth in 15 years, but they came up short by placing fih at the Big Ten Champion- ships from May 14-15 in Indianapolis. ey received votes in the May 4 CRCA/US Rowing Coaches national poll and were ranked as high as 16th this season. Iowa's top crew entered the conference champion- ships on the heels of its best finish of the season, sweeping Central Florida, Clemson, and Tennessee at the Tennessee Invitational Conference Clash on May 1 in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. By employing a collective relaxed demeanor, the Hawkeyes made waves at the Big Ten Champion- ships. "For us, it needs to be calm and confident," said senior coxswain Katie Brown. "Sometimes we get excited and nervous and kind of grip it too tight. We know we're going to do well and being calm and collected is a key." Iowa was No. 5 in the NCAA Region 4 rankings, looking up at league foes Ohio State, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Indiana. e Hawkeyes needed a top-four finish at Big Tens to extend their post- season but the 1V8+ was fih in 6:35.990, 0.569 seconds behind fourth-place Indiana. "Some of the racing our first eight and the rest of the team has shown against other Big Ten com- petition is that we're within striking distance of out-racing their seed," third-year UI head coach Andrew Carter said. "If we could out-race their seed, it would have put us in good position for an NCAA championship bid." e successful blend of experience and youth among the Hawkeye 1V8+ crew has been a high- light. It earned a first-place finish by 15.11-seconds against Kansas in the morning session and another top result ahead of Minnesota and Oklahoma in the aernoon session of the Big Ten/Big 12 Double Dual on April 23 in Baraboo, Wisconsin. It turned in strong performances against top national talent by recording a runner-up result against No. 1 Brown, a third-place finish against No. 18 Notre Dame and No. 2 California, and a fourth-place finish against No. 12 Wisconsin, No. 15 Gonzaga, and No. 18 Notre Dame at the Lake Natoma Invitational from April 16-17 in Gold River, California. With the team title on the line, the 1V8+ boat de- feated Minnesota by 5.7 seconds to earn the 42-30 team victory in the aernoon session of its home regatta April 9 on Lake Macbride. It also finished runner-up in the morning session to No. 12 Wis- consin. "One of the things that makes (the 1V8+) special are the senior members of that crew," Carter said. "eoretically we have five seniors in there — one will return for her fih year. e work they have done to transition this program in the last three years and get it to the level of competitiveness we have now, their leadership has been integral to that." Senior Cristy Hartman has been part of successful Hawkeye boats in the past, but this one has shown the consistency needed to be successful at the con- ference championship and beyond. "No matter what practice, we're always on," Hart- man said. "is time the consistency is there. Most people in the boat have felt the bumps in the pro- gram and we had a chip on our shoulder. We were motivated."