GREENE (NEWS CENTER Maine) -- Rain and fog cover the Androscoggin River.
t's not keeping the Bates rowing teams off the water. They've got more milestones to hit.
At last weekend's NIRC, the Bates men performed better than they ever have before. No male Bates rower had ever won gold there. This year, every Bates boat won a gold medal.
"When the second varsity eight won gold, and that's when we thought, 'This is our day. It's our day to make history,'" says senior captain Mats Terwiesch.
The wins earned Bates their first-ever trip to the IRA National Championship regatta, the top-tier championship in men's collegiate rowing.
"It's just a dream come true," says senior captain Kyle Schlueter. "Since this is our first time, we don't really know what to expect and we are going there just kind of relishing the moment and savoring it, and seeing what we can do to try to upset some teams."
For the Bates women, winning gold has become the standard. The Bobcats swept their NIRC competition for the second year in a row and have their sights set on another NCAA Division III championship title -- their third one in four years.
"We've had like a lot of wins and medals and that's exciting," says senior captain Grace Jurkovich, "It's not really about if we'll be fast, coach always says it's how fast we'll be, and it's really exciting to think about."
They're pushing each other to the limits to improve times and keep the titles coming in the years to come.
"We have a huge senior class, there are 21 of us between the men and the women," says senior captain Rosemary Kyne. "There's a lot of leadership there."
"It's been four years of endless miles on the water and lots and lots of racing," says senior captain Olivia Stockly. "I'm just excited to finish strong and have the best possible race that we can have."
The women will compete for the NCAA title May 24-25 in Sarasota, Florida, and the men will compete in their first IRA National Championship in West Windsor, New Jersey from June 1-3.