The Barometer Online

Issue date: 5/1/09 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Cory Reed Oregon State's women's Varsity 8+ rows down the Willamette River during practice Thursday afternoon. The No. 12 Beavers race in their only home meet of the year on Saturday against the No. 15 Washington State Cougars.

Oregon State women's rowing will host Pac-10 rival Washington State at its home waters at Dexter Lake near Eugene this Saturday, May 2.

This will be OSU's first and only home matchup of the season. The Beavers are ready to get back to competition after a disappointing weekend at the Columbus Invitational on April 18 and 19.

In Ohio two weeks ago, Oregon State came out ready and competed hard in races against top-ranked Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State. Varsity 8+ and second varsity 8+ boats didn't win a race over the weekend, but they did get the experience needed to push them ahead of other top ranked teams.

The Beavers' novice 8+ boat won two of its races against Ohio State and Michigan State but lost in its final match up against Michigan on Sunday. The varsity 4+ boat raced against Ohio State and Michigan State's varsity 4+ "A" and "B" boats, finishing in between the "A" and "B" boats both races. Varsity 4+ lost to Michigan on Sunday.

OSU women's rowing has steadily been ranked No. 12 for the past few weeks in the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association Poll. Washington State had been tied with Oregon State at No. 12 two weeks ago but has dropped to No. 15.

Oregon State barely pulled ahead to secure a win against Washington State last time the two faced each other, which was at the San Diego Crew Classic. This weekend will make for a good matchup of equally talented rowing teams from the Pac-10.

Races start Saturday at 9 a.m. with the Novice 8+ boat hitting the water first. The Varsity 4+ and Second Varsity 8+ boats will compete at 9:15 and 9:30, respectively. The three early races will be followed by the last race of the day between the Varsity 8+ boats at 9:45.

"We will head down and get a practice in at Detroit Lake before the races on Saturday," junior coxswain Celia Magistrale said. "It is going to be nice to have a home race because there will be more supporters there to watch us, which rarely happens because we always travel so far away."

This weekend's races will be the last time the Beavers compete before the Pac-10 Championships, which are held in two weeks at Lake Natoma, Calif. Oregon State must finish in the top three at the Pac-10 Championships to advance on to the NCAA championships.

Jane Ivey, a senior from New Zealand, talked about how tough the competition is in the Pac-10 conference.

"The whole Pac-10 is ranked in the top 20 in the polls," she said.

Weather predictions of showers this weekend might put a damper on things, but the women's rowing team is looking to come out strong and race the way it knows how, rain or shine.

Makenzie Marineau, sports writer

sports@dailybarometer.com

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