The Canisius rowing program returns to the water for its spring competitive season on Saturday, as the squad competes in the 35th Memorial Murphy Cup in Philadelphia, Pa.

“We are excited to kick off the racing this weekend,” head coach Erin Neppel said.  “The team has a lot of momentum coming out of an extremely tough spring training camp, and it'll be interesting to see how they stack up in the early season. They have become excellent at rolling with the punches, and while we haven't been able to get out to row in the couple days since we got back, I know it won't be a factor to these guys. They're just going to get out there and go.”

The last time the Blue and Gold hit the water in a race-day setting was the on the sports' grandest stage, as the Griffs battled tough regatta conditions for a 20th place finish at the Head of the Charles in Boston.

Prior to the crown jewel of the fall season, Canisius enjoyed a strong fall, recording first-place finishes against Buffalo, at the Challenge on the Canal, and its own home race of the Head of the Niagara/Wright Regatta.

Despite the long layover in actual race-conditions, the Griffs are excited to be competing against crews that they may not be as familiar with, which provides an added challenge, as the Blue and Gold push towards the conference Championship.

“I'm also looking forward to the opportunity to race crews that we typically don't get to see, and a lot of them are fast,” Neppel said. “This should be an excellent chance to get some good hard trips down the racecourse under our belts to set up a busy spring schedule.å”

The Golden Griffins lineup looks like this for the coming weekend: