This weekend the Michigan women"s crew team will start its spring season at the ACC/Big Ten Double Dual in Charlottesville, Va.

Other schools attending the regatta include Virginia, North Carolina and Ohio State.

The regatta which begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday will have Michigan rowing head-to-head against Virginia while Ohio State competes against North Carolina in the morning races.

"Virginia is one of the top programs in the country," Rothstein said. "That is obviously a big race for us."

Last season, Michigan showed that it was also a top program, when it upset the then-second-ranked Cavaliers. Michigan won both the first and second varsity eight against Virginia last spring.

At 2 p.m., Michigan will square off with North Carolina while Ohio State will take on Virginia.

The last time the two teams met, the Wolverines beat North Carolina by substantial margins in all three races in which they faced each other. Despite Michigan"s success in that regatta, Rothstein is not about to look past the Tar Heels

"They"re a good program," Rothstein said about the Tar Heels. "They haven"t been at the top tier like Virginia."

The double dual will be Michigan"s first race since Oct. 29, but the Wolverines have stayed in shape through a rigorous off-season program.

"I think the team did a great job preparing this winter," Rothstein said.

Michigan was not able to get on the water much due to bad weather, but that didn"t stop the Wolverines from training.

Every week the team held nine workouts on rowing machines. They also lifted weights twice a week.

Also, a new 6,000 square-foot boathouse on Belleville Lake aided the women in their conditioning. The boathouse has not been christened but was used by the team over the winter.

Thanks to Michigan"s top-notch program and rigorous off-season workouts, Rothstein has supreme confidence in the Wolverines" ability.

"We have a team that can compete with anyone in the country," he said.