The Iowa rowing team will return to action this weekend for the Sunshine State Invitational in Sarasota, Florida. The invitational will be held at Nathan Benderson Park on Friday and Saturday.

After competing in a duel against Yale and Harvard last week, the Hawkeyes are hoping to keep growing and improving going into the Sunshine State Invitational.

The Hawkeyes found some success against the Crimson. After Iowa was swept by Yale, the Hawkeyes’ Varsity Eight boat took down the Harvard Crimson in New Jersey.

“I was really happy with the growth of the team from the first session to the second session,” Iowa rowing head coach Jeff Garbutt said. “The first race is always tricky and challenging and when you go against someone like Yale, it’s a really great test. It was good to see the team handle that.”

The Hawkeyes’ Varsity Eight boat won Big Ten Boat of the Week on Wednesday after its recent performance. Iowa finished its race in six minutes and 34.3 seconds, almost four seconds ahead of Harvard’s 6:38.9.

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“I think there is still lots of growth and progress still to come,” sophomore Abbey Klostermann said. “It was good to get Harvard under our belt. I think that gave us a lot more confidence heading into this weekend for sure.”

The Hawkeye rowing team’s focus this spring is growth and improvement, as many rowers in Iowa’s top boat are underclassmen. Klostermann and sophomore Hailey Mercuri both have been put on the Varsity Eight team this year.

“We do have some rowers with a large amount of experience both internationally and nationally,” Garbutt said. “We use all that knowledge to help our athletes grow. It is nice to have people with experience in the boat to calm the nerves of our newer athletes.”

Garbutt, who was hired as the Hawkeyes’ head coach in October 2021, is going through his first season at the helm of Iowa’s program. He replaced former rowing coach Andrew Carter, who stepped down in October 2021 after leading the program since 2013.

Garbutt, along with new assistant coaches Lowell McNicholas and Megan Fitzpatrick, are learning to grow with new rowers on the squad.

“There has definitely been a more positive vibe in the locker room and in the waters this year,” Klostermann, who was on the team before the coaching change, said. “It has overall just been a great addition to our team.”

The Hawkeyes are looking forward to competition in the warm weather. Iowa will be competing against Stetson, University of Central Florida, Kansas, Kansas State, Jacksonville University, Miami, and Louisville.

Iowa will compete with its Varsity Eight I and II crews, Varsity Four I and II crews, and Novice Eight boat.

“We are going to be racing some great competition,” Garbutt said. “I know some of the coaches and I am expecting to have a good competition and a great challenge for us. For us, the whole thing is growth this year.”