The Penn State crew team returned from a spring break in South Carolina excited and ready to row into the new season on the right oar.

A team of about 40 varsity and 40 novice crew members returned from a well-spent spring break in Summerton, S.C., at Camp Bob Cooper. This was the team's first time on the water since the fall season, according to varsity head coach John Biddle.

"Spring break went exceptionally well; it was the best spring training since I've been coaching here at Penn State," Biddle said."

Biddle has been the head coach of the crew team for six out of the team's 11 years of competing for Penn State. The team was out on the water at least three times a day practicing.

"The weather was good for rowing so the team luckily only had to miss two practice sessions due to high winds," Biddle said.

The crew members worked hard, each trying to earn a spot in a varsity boat. Biddle said the camp helped him decide the varsity boats and they are pretty much set for this spring, but never final until race time.

Novice members coach and varsity assistant coach Josh Organist said the first few days of camp were difficult for the novices, but he was really pleased with their progress. He also said this was a time for the novices to work on their technique and strength, while varsity, having more experience, focused mainly on conditioning and strength.

"We are fortunate to have really a good group of athletic girls and guys," Organist said.

Last fall, the women's varsity 4 club team dominated against Division I schools with intercollegiate crew teams. The squad received gold medals in four out of six races it competed in and hopes to continue its success this spring. These four girls placed third out of 14 different schools at Boston in October and have been dominating together in a boat ever since.

"Last fall, we were all thrown in a boat at the Head of the Charles Race in Boston, and we all just came together," sophomore Tracy Norman said.

"That women's boat is very promising for the spring," Biddle said.

Kathline Donovan, a senior fourth-year crew member, said the competition is what she looks forward to.

"It's cool to race against teams that practice on a river everyday, and then to see how we compare to them when practicing mainly with the erg rowing machines," Donovan said.

Kelly Cline, a senior fourth-year crew member, said she loves to be part of a college club team and be able to go and beat a Division I team. Since the Penn State club team does perform so well against other competitive schools, Natalie Dell, a third-year junior, said it's not unusual to race against varsity teams and get recruited by them.

Another talented boat for this season is the men's varsity lightweight 4 team. It has a small advantage over other boats because juniors Max Feldman and Rob McNamera both had high school experience before joining crew at Penn State.

Since many of the crew members do not have prior experience before coming to Penn State, senior Joey Henry, lightweight captain, and sophomore Mike Wanich are perfect examples in excelling at the collegiate level. This boat holds one of the fastest times in recent history for a 2K race in this division at Penn State.

"I think we are going to be potential medal winners this spring," Feldman said.

The crew members are training hard every day, as a team and individually, to gain strength, establish a better technique and become one with the water.

This spring, the crew team will kick off on April 4 at the Bucknell Match Race. The team will also attend the Knecht Cup in New Jersey and the Mid Atlantic Conference Championships and finish its season at the Dad Vail Regatta.