By Bradley Rosenberg

The crew team’s record sank to 4-4 on Saturday after picking up third place at the Orchard Beach Lagoon in New Rochelle, N.Y. Columbia seized first place with a time of 6:38.4 and the University of Massachusetts-Amherst came in second with a time of 6:42.3, relegating NU to third place with a time of 6:44.5.

Despite the placing over Navy, these results have not satisfied the crew team.

“I think that we could have done better,” said junior rower Jen Carter. “We’re all really strong and really fit. It’s just a matter of using that talent better.”

Carter said that steps are being taken to do just that.

“There’s a lot of good changes going on both by the athletes and by [coach Joe Wilhelm]. We’re going to be training a little bit harder, a little bit more intense, and we’ll focus less on the technical side and more on endurance. Our technique is good now, and we just need to focus on coming together and making the boat go faster.”

Wilhelm agreed with Carter’s assessment, but thinks that the speed will come in time.

“The only way you can go faster is to take longer or more strokes,” he says. “We’re simply not ready to row at a higher stroke rating yet.”

Wilhelm attributes that to the late start of the season.

“Our academic calendar puts us behind two weeks,” said Wilhelm, “so we’re not used to the water yet. We’ve been working on our power and conditioning since September, but we need the water time. It’s like a baseball team. Your pitchers can pitch indoors all they want, but until they get on the field, they’re not ready.”

Because of this, Wilhelm has very few concerns about his team.

“It comes back to when I look at the season. Through experience, I know there’s a certain process to get from point A to point B. That process can’t be hurried. We’re not going as fast as we need to go, but we don’t need to panic about that. I’m pretty confident that we’ll be that fast by [the time it’s important], and that’s all that matters.”

Still, some of the boat’s members are anxious to get into the groove of things.

“We have to be more aggressive,” said senior crew member Cassandra Brown. “We sort of just have to change focus in practice and in racing.”

Brown trusts that Wilhelm will guide the team toward that focus.

“I think he’s got more experience than our entire varsity put together and times two,” she said. “He’s a good coach.”

Some of Wilhelm’s guiding ability can already be seen in the novice women’s crew team: they beat Navy, UMass, and Columbia Saturday with a time of 7:01.3.

Brown is impressed.

“I think you’re going to see a lot out of those girls,” she said.

The big question, though, is what will be seen from the varsity team next week at the Women’s Council Cup race.

Wilhelm expects a battle.

“I realize this is a pun with BU in the race,” he said, “but [that race] is going be a dog fight. It’s going to be a race where both crews go at each other as fast as they can, and they’ll push until only one is left standing. These crews will race each other very aggressively because they have a long history.”

Brown looks toward the race with just as much uncertainty.

“I’d love to say we’re going to kick the ‘heebie-jeebies’ out of them, but since we have yet [to get into our groove], I’m just going to say we need to step up to the plate.”

The Women’s Council Cup will take place this Saturday at the Charles River, and will include Boston University and Texas University. The first race starts at 9:45 a.m.