For the Seattle University Women’s Rowing team, this spring feels different. For the first time, they are competing as members of the West Coast Conference (WCC). After years as an independent program, Seattle U Rowing has entered a new era, approaching it with earned confidence and honest humility. The WCC lineup field includes the likes of Oregon State University, Santa Clara University and Gonzaga University among its familiar faces, but also brings in Creighton University and Sacramento State, schools joining the conference exclusively for rowing. 

The honor carries weight for a program that has often operated below the radar of college rowing’s national spotlight. 

“Rowing is a sport that doesn’t always get a lot of attention, not just here at Seattle U, but nationally. Not many people get the opportunity to be on a rowing team, so any recognition means a lot,” Torres said. 

Torres, a starboard rower and team captain, has embraced her leadership role in ways that have reshaped how she thinks about the sport. Where she once viewed rowing as a grind requiring toughness, she now sees the value in connection and culture. 

“Before, I think I saw rowing as a very violent thing, where you go in, do the work, and get out. But now, I’ve seen a much softer side of the sport,” Torres said. “You need a passion for it, and you need to help others find that passion as well.” 

Once back on campus, the team spent many hours in the rowing machine room, commonly known as the erg room, of the Redhawk Center doing land workouts and conditioning. Workouts such as lengthy steady-state sessions, 6k pacing, sprint work and full-on 6ks and 2ks are frequent in winter training. The many practices on land establish their fitness base for the season. 

Every February, the rowers compete against each other in the annual “WCCs in a Day” where they complete three 2k races in a bracket-style setup to determine the fastest rower on the erg. The winner signs a T-shirt which hangs in the erg room displaying past years winners.

After studying abroad last year and missing a full season, Schmidt returned this fall motivated to rediscover herself as an athlete. Her offseason was largely solitary, spent doing workouts alone at home with no coaches or teammates nearby. 

“Doing the hard stuff by yourself is an integral part of this sport. This offseason, I focused on the mental side and making sure I still put in the effort even without teammates beside me. I learned a lot about my mentality as an athlete,” Schmidt said. 

The team’s three words for the season, unity, intensity and grit, capture the culture the captains have worked hard to build. The balance of fun and focus has been on full display this past week as the team warmed up in the weight room, joking and dancing before locking in for a hard session. 

For Schmidt, who is in her final year with the team, that atmosphere is exactly what she was hoping to come back to after a year away. 

“We have an amazing group this year, and we’re already having so much fun in the off-season. I want to make sure I enjoy these last few months as a rower, and that this season makes me happy,” Schmidt said. 

Seattle U opens its 2026 season at American Lake March 16, before travelling to Oregon State later this month.