ORLANDO - On Friday morning, the UCF rowing team will open its season at home on Lake Pickett with a Senior Day regatta against Jacksonville and UConn.
The current racing schedule has the III Four starting the regatta at 9:30 a.m. with the III Eight following at 9:45. The II Four will compete 15 minutes later, and the regatta will round out with the I Four at 10:15, the II Eight at 10:30 and the I Eight at 10:45. Times are subject to change due to weather, which includes some sunshine with the chance of some strong headwinds and wind gusts.
The Jacksonville Dolphins open the spring season off back-to-back Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championships, marking the seventh time the Dolphins have won the conference title.
UConn is coming off a strong fall season where the Huskies competed at three events consisting of the Head of the Charles, Head of the Schuylkill and the NYRA Fall Invitational.
“Friday will be a good test for us,” UCF head coach Mara Allen said. “We are facing two good teams that have great head coaches leading the way. The weather will be a bit of a challenge, but we can’t control that. It’ll be a challenge for every boat on the water. What we can control is our mindset and making sure we put up the fastest times that we can regardless of the conditions.”
Following the regatta, the Knights will honor the following graduating seniors:
Connery Cassidy
Tegan Fookes
Mackenzie Harrod
Annberlee Hothem
Aryann Johnson
Liza Lutter
Seyene Oord
Saskia Papsova
Martina Pischedda
Aubrie Russo
Martyna Wasilewska
Charlotte Wiley
“It’s been really impressive to see our senior class this year how they’ve transitioned in the fall until now,” Allen said. “When they started the year, they had to learn an entirely new system with me coming in as a head coach alongside the freshmen, sophomores and juniors. It’s been awesome to see in the last few weeks that they are taking the reins now and they understand what we want in terms of attitude and effort.”