The University of Iowa rowing team will kick off its 2022 spring campaign in Camden, New Jersey, on Saturday. Iowa will take on Ivy Leaguers Harvard and Yale. The Michigan State Spartans will also participate in this weekend’s festivities, though they aren’t slated to face the Hawkeyes directly.

In the latest Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) top 20, Yale is ranked fourth. Harvard has received poll votes for the last two weeks.

“We know Harvard and Yale are very prestigious schools and very good at their sport as well,” Hawkeye sophomore Hailey Mercuri said. “I have confidence in us and we are definitely going to push ourselves.”

The Hawkeyes finished the fall season on a high note. In their last meet of the semester, the Jayhawk Invitational, both the Varsity 8 and Varsity 4 teams finished first.

With the momentum they gained on the Kansas River, the Hawkeyes feel confident ahead of their spring campaign.

“It was good,” Mercuri said of Iowa’s fall season. “We definitely have a lot more left. I was ready to work hard and see improvements. I was ready to take our new recruits and teach them. From fall to the season right now, we have seen a lot of improvements.”

Mercuri has a lot of experience, even though she’s just a sophomore. Mercuri participated in seven meets as a freshman. In those seven events, she competed with the Varsity 8+ crew.

Now, Iowa head coach Jeff Garbutt is excited to see how far Mercuri and the rest of his team have come since they last competed in the fall.

“I am excited to see how we have progressed through the winter,” said Garbutt, the Hawkeyes’ first-year head coach. “Winters are long in Iowa, so we have spent a lot of time indoors. We just came back from our training trip and a lot of progress was made there. Just really excited to put it to the test this weekend.”

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Garbutt added a few new coaches to his staff during the winter: Lowell McNicholas and Megan Fitzpatrick. McNicholas and Fitzpatrick joined the Hawkeyes on Dec. 20 and Nov. 1, respectively.

McNicholas was previously a volunteer assistant coach for the Wisconsin men’s rowing program. Fitzpatrick was an assistant coach for the U.S. Naval Academy before she joined Garbutt’s group. Fitzpatrick was also a coach at Iowa from 2014-19.

“We have a new coaching staff this season,” Mercuri said. “Obviously, getting closer with them will be big. They are great.”

The Hawkeyes will take on the Bulldogs and Crimson at 7 a.m. and 11:10 a.m., respectively.

“I expect to see us compete this weekend,” Garbutt said. “Each boat has a set of goals we try to accomplish this weekend going against Harvard and Yale.”

This weekend’s meet is one of eight on the Hawkeyes’ spring schedule. Iowa will compete in the Big Ten and Pac-12 Invitationals in April. The 2022 Big Ten Women’s Rowing Championships are scheduled for May 15.