Oct. 1, 2008

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - The 2008-09 North Carolina rowing squad saw outside competition for the first time this fall on Saturday with a scrimmage against Duke at Lake Michie. The Atlantic Coast Conference rivals raced varsity fours, varsity eights and second varsity eights, with each boat completing a 5,000-meter course twice.

"We used the scrimmage as a way to identify our strengths and weaknesses early in the season," UNC coach Sarah Haney said. "We've only been on the water for a few weeks and this lets us see how long we're holding our technique within the 5,000-meter race, see how we're holding our fitness."

The team, which includes eight seniors, will race for the first time on Oct. 12 at the Occoquan Chase in Occoquan, Va. They'll also see fall action at the Head of the Chattahoochee in Chattanooga, Tenn., Nov. 1-2.

"We're doing a lot of things really well right now, things that we've been working on," Haney said. "There are a lot of things we need to do and areas in which we need to keep progressing, but we felt good about what the team put out there on Saturday. We're off to a good start and we're looking forward to racing at the Occoquan."