GOLD RIVER, Calif. – UW women’s crew completed a successful trip to the NCAA Championships with a fourth-place team finish, highlighted by a bronze medal in the second varsity eight, Sunday at Lake Natoma.
“This was one of the toughest regattas I’ve seen – three days of really competitive racing,” UW women’s head coach Bob Ernst said. “But overall, mission accomplished. This was a really good stepping-stone for this program back to the top.”
As the fourth-place team, the Huskies are the last of the top-four teams recognized by the NCAA at the National Championships and will receive the fourth-place trophy. The varsity four took fourth in its grand final and the varsity eight finished the day with a sixth-place finish in the grand final.
“Our whole goal coming into the NCAA Championships was to put all three of our boats in the grand finals, and we were one of just two teams to accomplish that,” Ernst said. “To get the fourth-place trophy in such a great competition is really big for our team.”
FULL RESULTS
The third-place finish for the second varsity was the Huskies’ highest finish in a grand final at this year’s championships. UW was part of a tight pack at the beginning of the race, sitting in fourth place at the 500-meter mark before passing Yale and moving into third before the halfway point. The Huskies stayed in third for the remainder of the race, holding off a late attempt from Yale to get into the top three.
UW’s varsity four began the Huskies’ day by finishing fourth in the grand final. The Huskies fell off a quick early pace, but led the second group of three throughout the race from lane five and held off Ohio St. to preserve the fourth-place finish.
The Huskies’ varsity eight capped off the day in a very competitive grand final that saw UW finish in sixth, just 1.5 seconds separating the fourth- through sixth-place finishers. Ohio St. won the varsity eight grand final, beating California by a half-second.
“This was a really good season for us,” Ernst said. “We made so much progress throughout the season and it was a pleasure to coach these athletes this year.”
Results
Varsity 8 Grand Final: 1, OSU, 6:18.1; 2, Cal, 6:18.6; 3, UVa, 6:24.3; 4, Texas, 6:27.1; 5, Stan, 6:28.0; 6. UW, 6:28.5
Second Varsity 8 Grand Final: 1, Brown, 6:25.990; 2, OSU 6:27.110; 3, UW, 6:32.050; 4, Yale, 6:34.810; 5, Cal, 6:35.140; 6, WSU, 6:39.720
Varsity 4 Grand Final: 1, Uva, 7:12.760; 2, Yale, 7:12.920; 3, Brown, 7:13.070; 4, UW, 7:21.730; 5, OSU, 7:23.710; 6, Princeton, 7:29.930
