The No. 2 Virginia rowing team took four out of five races from No. 8 Michigan State, swept No. 17 UCLA and recorded a Second Varsity Eight victory against No. 3 Southern California this weekend at Lake Monticello - located 15 miles outside of Charlottesville.
The weekend slate, which was the Cavaliers' only appearance at home this season, served as the team's final litmus test before the reigning national and conference champions enter the ACC Championships slated to begin April 23 in Clemson, S.C.
"Every year is different," coach Kevin Sauer said. "It's like, 'Yeah, national champions last year but who cares?' It's about what do you do now ... and I think we've progressed pretty well [throughout the regular season]."
During Friday evening's matchup against the Spartans, the Cavaliers' Varsity Four team cruised past its Spartan counterparts with an 8:44.8 finishing time - 20 seconds ahead of its foe. But the Spartans countered with a first place finish in the Second Varsity Eight event to hand the Cavaliers' Second Varsity team its first loss of the season.
The Second Varsity Eight victory would be the Spartans' only victory of the evening as the Virginia Varsity Eight team closed out the matchup with a first place finish in the premiere event. The Cavaliers crossed the finish line at the 7:14.8 mark - five seconds ahead of the Spartans - to improve to 3-2 on the year.
Virginia looked even more impressive during its second day of competition at Lake Monticello as the squad swept the Bruins in the varsity events. Despite a delayed start because of intense thunderstorms and a persistent strong wind during the event, the Cavaliers decisively sent UCLA home without a coveted upset victory.
"UCLA gave us a really good race in the Varsity Eight race, which was awesome," Sauer said. "And our [Second Varsity Eight] really responded well despite getting beat [Friday]. We're all making progress. Every chance you get to go down the course is a chance to perform and show what you can do ... and we have to [continue] to step up to the plate and show what we can do."
On the final day of the regatta, the Cavaliers only managed to secure a win in the Second Varsity Eight event against the Trojans, who blew past Virginia by nearly eight and nine seconds during the Varsity Four and Varsity Eight events, respectively.
The Second Varsity Eight team, meanwhile, posted a first place finish against the Trojans with a finishing time of 6:29.2 to secure the Cavaliers' only varsity victory of Sunday morning's race.
Now with the regular season behind them, the Cavaliers will take aim at collecting their 11th conference title in the last 12 years. Last season, Virginia bested second-place finisher, Clemson, with a total of 60 team points after sweeping all three of the varsity events. The Cavaliers' Varsity Eight also nabbed ACC Crew of the Year honors for their season of work.
Senior Claudia Blandford, a member of the Varsity Eight team, believes that opponents are now hungrier than ever to down the Cavaliers because of their impressive 2010 campaign and continued success in 2011.
"I'd definitely say that we have a target on our back, especially with our preseason ranking of No. 1," Blandford said. "We're still ranked really high, which makes us even more like the team to beat."\nBut despite the challenges associated with being one of the nation's top programs, Blandford believes that the Cavaliers are poised to make another run for the NCAA title.
"I feel like we've proved ... that we didn't lose our speed from last year," the senior leader said. "And we're learning what it takes to be focused, which is a very big step in the way to winning a national championship again. I'm pleased with how well we're holding our own despite that target [on our back]"
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