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Press release from Humboldt Athletics:

Three-time national champion Cal Poly Humboldt women’s rowing is set to defend their 2023 title this weekend from Lake Harsha at East Fork State Park in Bethel, Ohio. After arriving Tuesday night, the Lumberjacks have now concluded two days of practice in the new waters of Lake Harsha.

“The travel for us went easy, we tried to get out here the past couple of days and make the place as familiar as possible since this is a new course for everyone,” stated head coach Matt Weise. “There is nothing new once you are out there, the coxswains are the external eyes and have to know where everything is. They spend the first day of practice really focusing on the external pieces surrounding the race and today hopefully they were able to be more internal with their boats to get them up and running again.”

When asked about being in a similar situation as last year, earning second place at the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) Championships and being the “underdog” at nationals, Weise said, “The team is highly motivated after GNAC’s, they have really attacked and stepped on the gas these past couple weeks. The boats have made some good changes technically and physically the training is ready, so I think they are ready to be top notch.”

Former GNAC Rower of the Year and First-Team All-GNAC selection for this season, Dana Foley, spoke with media after Wednesday’s practice.

Foley stated, “The venue in Ohio is really great. We have nice lanes and flat water. We’ve just been doing some light rows to get used to the water and today went particularly strong. We seem to be more locked in after a couple days of travel and feel ready for our heats tomorrow. I think our technique has also improved over the past two weeks that have helped make some big jumps in our speed.”

Racing begins on Friday (May 31) with the Division II eights heats at 9 AM ET/6 AM PT followed by the fours at 9:24 AM ET/6:24 AM PT. Humboldt will be racing in the second heat of both the eight and four races. …

To watch the live stream on ncaa.com, click here.

For more information on Cal Poly Humboldt Women’s Rowing, please visit humboldtathletics.com and follow us on all social media platforms.