Ali Woods

Class:
Freshman
High School:
Oliver Springs
Hometown:
Oliver Springs, Tenn.

2010-11: Academic honors include Dean's List, AD Honor Roll and Red & Black Scholar ... With the exception of one race, spent the spring racing season as the coxswain for the Cardinals' varsity eight boat ... Led the crew to its BIG EAST title winning performance ... Boat also earned wins over #10 Wisconsin, #16 Tennessee, Indiana, Minnesota, Syracuse, Boston and Kansas State with her at the controls ... Crew finished fifth at the Oak Ridge Invitational.

Prior to UofL: Rowed for Atomic club team for five years...Won club's Coach's Award in 2009 ... Named Coxswain of the Year in 2010 ... Named an SEJ "A" Coxswain ...Team placed in the top 25 of the Head of the Charles in 2008 and 2009 ... Placed third in the eight plus and first in the four plus race at the 2009 Head of the Hooch ... Competed in Youth Nationals as a rower in 2007, 2009, 2010.

Personal: Born Aug. 22, 1992, in Knoxville, Tenn. ... Daughter of Jeff and Janine Woods ... Has one brother, Eli ... Majoring in Pan-African studies with a minor in religion at U of L ... Post-college ambition as a student is to graduate on time pursuing a degree in Pan-African studies, and to teach ESL in Africa; as an athlete, she hopes to take in as much as possible to develop into a better coxswain and leader, and lead a boat to a BIG EAST win bringing the team closer to the NCAA Championship ... Hobbies and outside interests include graphic design, reading and international trips ... Chose the University of Louisville because of the atmosphere around campus and all of the support athletes get in academics ... Believes best things about the city of Louisville are its size and the many things to do ... Best thing about U of L rowing is the challenge ... Favorite class is English ... After graduation, she plans to move to Africa to teach ESL ... Says her best race was the Head of the Charles 2009 (fall) and the B final at Youth Nationals (spring) ... If she could tell her incoming teammates one thing, it would be to stay positive.