Saturday, September 21
Allentown, Pa.
Lehigh University
vs
Parents Weekend Home Scrimmage
Photo by: Clark Boinis
Rowing Kicks Off Fall Campaign At Parents Weekend Scrimmage
9/20/2024 12:56:00 PM | Men's Rowing, Women's Rowing
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – With rosters finalized and boats starting to hit the water, Lehigh rowing officially returns to action to begin their fall season this weekend. The Mountain Hawks will host a family weekend home scrimmage on Saturday to kick off their fall campaign.
The Mountain Hawks return two veteran teams in 2024-25, as Lehigh only graduated a total of three student-athletes across both the men's and women's teams. Steven J. '69 & Karen A. Lee head coach Peter Costas believes that this will be a massive benefit to his program.
"Rowing is a complicated sport with a lot of terminology to know, so it's certainly an advantage to have so many student-athletes coming back," said Costas. "I think there's been an openness with our upper classmen with regards to responsibilities… They are leading by example and are actively involved with moving performance and standards forward."
Men's and women's rowing will be on site at the Steiner/Steinberg Boathouse in Allentown for an intrasquad scrimmage on Saturday. The scrimmage will be Lehigh's first chance to simulate a real race environment after rosters were finalized and tryouts were held earlier this fall.
"I'm really excited for the competitiveness we're seeing in practice to hit another gear," said Costas. "We've seen boats challenge each other really well, we've seen urgency and confidence when we've needed it. As with any new year, it's really exciting to see first-years come in and be themselves and insert freshness into the tone we've already had going on."
The Mountain Hawks have welcomed ten newcomers to the program, including six first-years. For these new rowers, Saturday will be their first-ever taste of a true live collegiate rowing environment.
"We're hoping to see a continuation of what we've seen at practice from [our newcomers], which is a lot of confidence and a lot urgency," said Costas. "In a lot of ways, there's time for skill mastery and fitness to grow, but I think what's important is that we bring a really competitive identity to competitive moments."
Following this weekend's scrimmage, the Mountain Hawks will have several other events throughout the fall that will see them face off against live competition. Lehigh next month will head to the Head of the Housatonic on October 13 and the Head of the Schuylkill on October 26. The team will then host another home scrimmage for the annual Class Day Regatta on November 2 before the women's team concludes the fall with a novice regatta at Bucknell on November 10.
"It's certainly helpful to see where we're stacking up and how what we're seeing at practice plugs into the competitive environment before we are pursuing championships come spring," said Costas. "We're really excited to run even lineups at these events. In doing that, it reaffirms our philosophy that if we're practicing the right way and our process is right, we're going to get the most out of that over the next eight months."
Like Lehigh Rowing on Facebook, follow on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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The Mountain Hawks return two veteran teams in 2024-25, as Lehigh only graduated a total of three student-athletes across both the men's and women's teams. Steven J. '69 & Karen A. Lee head coach Peter Costas believes that this will be a massive benefit to his program.
"Rowing is a complicated sport with a lot of terminology to know, so it's certainly an advantage to have so many student-athletes coming back," said Costas. "I think there's been an openness with our upper classmen with regards to responsibilities… They are leading by example and are actively involved with moving performance and standards forward."
Men's and women's rowing will be on site at the Steiner/Steinberg Boathouse in Allentown for an intrasquad scrimmage on Saturday. The scrimmage will be Lehigh's first chance to simulate a real race environment after rosters were finalized and tryouts were held earlier this fall.
"I'm really excited for the competitiveness we're seeing in practice to hit another gear," said Costas. "We've seen boats challenge each other really well, we've seen urgency and confidence when we've needed it. As with any new year, it's really exciting to see first-years come in and be themselves and insert freshness into the tone we've already had going on."
The Mountain Hawks have welcomed ten newcomers to the program, including six first-years. For these new rowers, Saturday will be their first-ever taste of a true live collegiate rowing environment.
"We're hoping to see a continuation of what we've seen at practice from [our newcomers], which is a lot of confidence and a lot urgency," said Costas. "In a lot of ways, there's time for skill mastery and fitness to grow, but I think what's important is that we bring a really competitive identity to competitive moments."
Following this weekend's scrimmage, the Mountain Hawks will have several other events throughout the fall that will see them face off against live competition. Lehigh next month will head to the Head of the Housatonic on October 13 and the Head of the Schuylkill on October 26. The team will then host another home scrimmage for the annual Class Day Regatta on November 2 before the women's team concludes the fall with a novice regatta at Bucknell on November 10.
"It's certainly helpful to see where we're stacking up and how what we're seeing at practice plugs into the competitive environment before we are pursuing championships come spring," said Costas. "We're really excited to run even lineups at these events. In doing that, it reaffirms our philosophy that if we're practicing the right way and our process is right, we're going to get the most out of that over the next eight months."
Like Lehigh Rowing on Facebook, follow on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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Rowing Season Preview
Friday, March 28
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Wednesday, April 24
