This year, the team brings a good mix of new and returning members. The Sharks return 15 rowers from last year's squad, including seven of the varsity-8 who won the NCAA Championship petite final in 2015. Veterans Adrianna Rosario (Sr., Pembroke Pines, Fla.) , Bethany Warlich (Jr., Galloway, N.J.) and Victoria Porretti (So., Norristown, Pa.) are some of the returners looking to bring the team back to national prominence under the guidance of second-year head coach Heather Barney.
 
"Bethany (Warlich) was an All-American last year," said head coach Heather Barney. "She has always been a physical leader on our team, and she is starting to step up and be more of a vocal leader as well."
 
"Adrianna Rosario was the stroke of our varsity-8 last year and has always been one of our more technically skilled rowers as well as a really good leader on the team," continued Barney. "This year she has really focused on developing the physicality to compete at the next level."
 
Other varsity-8 returners include Cassilly Lobaugh (Jr., Milton, Ga.), Daesha Roberts (Jr., Yulee, Fla.), Remi McClellan (Sr., Mullica, N.J.), and Kamaye Nichols (So., Orlando, Fla.). 
 
The Sharks will also welcome 11 newcomers including freshmen and transfers. Those who have made and are expected to make an impact include Sarah Woelfer (Jr., Fishers, Ind.), McKenzie George (Fr., Loveland, Ohio), Marnie McLean (Fr., Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada), Nicole Baliszweski (Fr., Egg Harbor City, N.J.) and Sam Loriot (Fr., Somerville, N.J.).
 
"Sarah Woelfer is a graduate student who comes to us from Purdue University. She is just awesome. She is a tremendously physically gifted athlete who makes a big impact right out of the box," said Barney.
"McKenzie George and Marnie McLean, along with Sarah and Bethany, made up our varsity-4 that was second at the Head of the Charles in the fall, which was definitely a highlight result for us. We are excited about what they are going to do this spring as well," added Barney.
"A few others who are impressing us in training right now are Nicole Baliszewski, one of our freshmen, and Sam Loriot, who is actually a novice," continued Barney. "Sam just learned how to row this September, and she is just killing it right now in training. We are excited to see her compete at the freshman level and we will see if she can get into the mix with our NCAA squad."
To get ready for the season, the team has spent the fall and winter focusing on fitness and training.
 
"We've raised the bar in terms of our training and our expectations for what we think our student-athletes need to do to be competitive this season," said head coach Heather Barney. "They have embraced it really well and we are having a great training season. We are excited to see what kind of speed gains we are going to get from that as we get back onto the water in the coming weeks."
 
The Sharks will scrimmage 2015 Division III National Champion Bates College in Tampa, Fla. on Feb. 27. They will then kick things up a notch with a scrimmage against defending SSC and Division II National Champions Barry on March 5 at the team's home course in Holland Park on Hollywood, Florida's Intracoastal Waterway. A scrimmage with Georgetown University on March 12 in Sarasota, Florida will be the last event before spring competition officially begins.
 
"We open with defending national champions at the Division II and III level, so we will get a sense of where we're at pretty quickly," said Barney. "Within the conference, Barry is definitely a phenomenal rival to have. They are a strong program and we are looking forward to the two of us being among the leaders in Division II nationally this year. "
On March 18, NSU will face UCF and UConn in Orlando, Florida. The Sharks faced the Knights in exhibition during the fall. This will give the team additional exposure to Division I competition this season.
 
"We enjoy stepping up and competing at the Division I level when we have the opportunity," added Barney.
 
Next comes the FIRA Championships on April 1-2 in Sarasota, Florida. Coxswain Amanda Hudon (Sr., Sebastian, Fla.) and rowers Warlich, Roberts and Lobaugh will look to defend their varsity-4 title. Last year's varsity-4 boat claimed victory over Central Oklahoma, ranked third in DII by season's end, and DI opponent Jacksonville.
 
This year's Knecht Cup will be held on April 9-10 in West Windsor, N.J. The Knecht Cup will feature top schools across all divisions, and the Sharks will again look to step up to race quality opponents from the entire east coast and beyond. The Sharks will be relying on both their veterans and rookies to break into the varsity-4 Grand Final this year as they were just three seconds off at the 2015 event.
 
The team will look to use the Knecht Cup as preparation for the SSC Championship on April 29 in Sarasota. In 2015, NSU finished second overall, just five points short of champion Barry. Three members of the team received conference honors, including Porretti who was named to the All-SSC Freshman/Novice team.
 
The regular season will conclude with the prestigious Dad Vail Regatta, which is known as the largest collegiate rowing competition in the nation. It will be held on May 13-14 in Philadelphia, Pa., and will include strong NCAA Division II competition including last year's No. 2-ranked Mercyhurst, Humboldt State and Central Oklahoma – tied for third last year, and No. 6 Philadelphia University, in addition to No. 1 Barry. At last year's event, the NSU varsity-8 raced in the event's DII Grand Final and placed fifth overall. Seven of the nine members of that boat will be returning this year. This race will be a big factor in whether the team will earn a spot at the NCAA National Championship.
 
The Sharks' performance at the 2015 Dad Vail propelled them to the 2015 NCAA National Championship where they won the varsity-8 petite final to finish fifth place overall. This year's championship will be held on May 27-29 in Gold River, Calif.