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Senior Liz Pallas-Jacobs should have seen the signs all around her.

If last year was not enough of a warning, then her teammates screaming at her to strip off her warm-ups should have been. Following Sunday’s Miller Cup, held in Marina Del Rey, a short awards ceremony honoring the seniors led to a surprised Pallas-Jacobs being thrown into the murky marina water.

“It’s a congratulatory thing we do at the end,†junior Brittany Merchant said.

Not only does Pallas-Jacobs deserve recognition for being a senior and co-captain, she is also unique to the program in that she has been on the team for all four years of college. In fact, Pallas-Jacobs was one of UCLA’s first-ever women’s rowing recruits.

The 31st-annual event this weekend was the last home meet for Pallas-Jacobs and two other seniors, Sarah Lombardo and Lora Batina. At the meet, all four UCLA boats won their races, making it the fourth-consecutive year the Bruins have captured the Miller Cup.

“It was a nice way to finish my career at home,†Pallas-Jacobs said. “Our varsity eight boat won by six seconds and we were very happy.â€

As a rower on the second varsity eight boat, Merchant said her boat had really good rhythm and stroke ratio when they faced competitor Loyola Marymount in the preliminary heat. Although Merchant’s boat did win the heat, the Lions created a close race. In the second varsity eight’s final heat, San Diego State held steady with the Bruins until the 1000-meter mark when UCLA finally pulled ahead to win.

Another close race came when the novice eight boat competed against UC Santa Barbara and won by only a couple of seconds.

Now the No. 15 Bruins are undefeated in dual-meet competition as they head into Saturday’s race against No. 3 USC at the Trojan’s home course in San Pedro. After losing the varsity eight boat race last year, the Bruins have vengeance on their minds. The crosstown rivalry race will determine points for the ongoing Lexus Gauntlet competition between the two schools.

“It’s an important race for the team and we’re hoping to have a strong showing. I know we’re going to do our best,†Pallas-Jacobs said.

Merchant is confident that the team will perform well and that everyone will step up in their races under the pressure.

“I’m slightly nervous, but I think USC is beatable,†Merchant said.