Huskies looking to renew credentials

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In the world of women's crew, it almost sounds like heresy — the Washington Huskies not make it to the national championships?

But as the season enters its final stages with the national championships looming at the end of the month, it's far from certain the Huskies will be there.

Which puts just that much more importance on today's Windermere Cup race for UW's varsity eight.

The result itself won't necessarily have a big impact on UW's season or its hopes of getting to nationals.

But a good performance, coach Eleanor McElvaine said, could indicate the Huskies are on the upswing heading into the heart of the season.

It's been rare that the Huskies have even needed to have an upswing at this time of the year.

Washington has long been the power broker in women's crew on the West Coast, and often the nation. UW's varsity eight won 11 straight Pac-10 titles until finishing second last year to Stanford. The UW women have won four of the past seven national titles.

But times are changing, on Montlake and everywhere else. Longtime coach Jan Harville retired after last season and the Huskies returned just two rowers from last year's varsity eight, which finished fourth in the nation.

The result has been a UW team that has dropped just a bit, finishing second to Cal twice this season. Washington likely has to be no lower than No. 2 in the Pac-10 to be one of the 10 teams selected to compete at the national championships. That's where UW is rated, No. 2 on the West Coast behind the Bears.

"We have a young crew and as much as we hate being second because it is not familiar territory for us, it is propelling the team in the right direction," McElvaine said. "We've had a lot of improvement and growing up and maturing and I'm excited to see what they can do the rest of the season."

Usually, such turnover wouldn't make much more than a ripple in UW's program.

But with more schools getting serious about women's rowing — in part to comply with Title IX — rebuilding is getting a bit harder.

UCLA, which will compete today in the women's Windermere Cup race along with Washington and the Italian national team, didn't have an official rowing team until three years ago. But now the Bruins not only have a team but are on the cusp of the top 25.

Other "football schools" such as Ohio State — ranked No. 1 in the nation — and Michigan State (No. 7) are also making inroads in a sport long dominated by Ivy League schools such as Harvard, Brown and Princeton as well as other traditional crew schools such as UW.

"It's not so much that we are getting bad but that all the other women's programs are getting so much better," said UW senior Mary Reaves, one of two returners from last year's varsity eight. "They are getting good coaching and good recruiting and there is a lot more rowing in high school. But I think that's great because we are still going to be good and be competitive."

Still, Reaves admits it makes it more challenging to keep Washington at its historically lofty level.

"I know I think about it because when I came here, Washington was at the top of the game and you'd go to the other regattas and you'd say, 'I row at Washington,' and that meant something to a lot of people," she said.

It still does, of course, especially on Windermere Cup day, a race that is unique in college athletics for its setting and fan support, with thousands lining Montlake Cut to cheer the competitors.

"We always talk about how we are out there in the dark in the morning practicing and so it's fun to show what we do to such a huge crowd," said McElvaine.

Said Reaves: "It's going to be really good for us because it will help us to race under pressure better. It's a different kind of pressure than the national championships because we don't want to disappoint the home crowd."

Bob Condotta: 206-515-5699 or bcondotta@seattletimes.com