No. 1 Cal Continues Powerful Performance At IRAs

WEST WINDSOR, N.J., – It was another incredible day of racing for the No. 1 California Golden Bears men's rowing team as the varsity four won its grand final to take home the Eric Will Trophy for the first time since 2009 and fifth time in program history. In addition, all three varsity eights advanced to their respective grand finals Sunday, extending a streak that dates back to 2014. Cal is just one of three schools to have all three varsity eights in the grand finals this year.
 
"It was another great day for the program and another big step through the weekend," Cal head coach Scott Frandsen said. "Saturday is always the day that sets up being able to compete for what we've been training towards all year. I'm really happy to get through and I think the guys are ready to have their best races of the year tomorrow. I think they're ready and acknowledge that it's going to be really competitive. There are probably two to four crews that all have a chance to win and more that have a chance to battle. We're going to need to have very good races tomorrow to be in that mix and hopefully we can do it."
 
In the varsity four grand final, Cal got off to a strong start and took an early half-boat lead during the first 500 meters that quickly grew to a full boat over Northeastern by the halfway mark. The Bears didn't let up and pushed their lead to over a boat-length of open water between them and the rest of the field over the third 500 meters. Temple made up some ground over the final 500 meters, but Cal's lead was never threatened as it easily won the race in a time of 07:04.781.
 
"It was great to see the four win today and set the right tone for the weekend," Cal assistant coach Jason Elefant said. "The four is always a bit of an 'unknown' as we don't really select the group until about a week after Pac-12s. We knew they had some speed after winning the time trial, but to see them fend off other crews in the final to take the win was very exciting. I feel especially happy for the two seniors in the crew, Josh Anderson and Savannah Adamo, who went out as national champions in their last race for Cal Crew."
 
In the varsity eight semifinal, Cal took an early two-seat lead over Washington and Harvard and extended it to a half-boat advantage by the 500-meter mark. The Bears continued to grow their lead to bow-to-stern over Washington by the halfway mark. Over the last 500 meters, Cal managed its lead and maintained its distance over the rest of the pack to easily win in 06:02.434 and advance to the grand final.
 
The second varsity eight race proved to be one of the more exciting finishes of the day. Cal got off to a great start and led the pack alongside Yale. The Bulldogs made a push and took a half-boat lead on Cal by the 500-meter mark. The Bears were able to make a move and walk back two seats on Yale by the 1,000-meter mark and led Brown by a half-boat. Cal made a strong push in the final 500 meters and surged past Yale in just 20 strokes to win by a boat length in 6:16.962 and advance to the grand final.
 
In the third varsity eight semifinal, Cal, Washington and Yale led the pack in the opening 500 meters, but the Bears were behind the Bulldogs by four seats and the Huskies by two seats. Washington took the lead by the halfway mark and Cal maintained its gap from Yale. The Bears made a move in the third 500 meters to take a two-seat lead over the Bulldogs and were just four seats back of the Huskies. Cal was unable to overtake Washington over the final 500 meters and finished three seconds back in second place in 06:32.235 to advance to the grand final.
 
The Bears return to the water Sunday for the grand finals, when the 3V8+ will kick things off 9:04 a.m. EDT, followed by the 2V8+ at 9:28 a.m. and the V8+ at 10:08 a.m.
 
Saturday Results
 
V8+ Semifinal A
1. California - 06:02.434
2. Washington - 06:04.640
3. Northeastern - 06:05.934
4. Harvard - 06:06.802
5. Dartmouth - 06:19.178
6. Pennsylvania - 06:34.362
 
2V8+ Semifinal A
1. California - 06:16.962
2. Yale - 06:20.802
3. Brown - 06:24.924
4. Syracuse - 06:34.972
5. Cornell - 06:46.900
6. Pennsylvania - 06:47.778
 
3V8+ Semifinal B
1. Washington - 06:29.185
2. California - 06:32.235
3. Yale - 06:33.675
4. Princeton - 06:43.855
5. Boston - 06:52.011
6. Navy - 06:52.683
 
V4+ Grand Final
1. California - 07:04.781
2. Temple - 07:06.789
3. Dartmouth - 07:07.869
4. FIT - 07:09.011
5. Navy - 07:11.161
6. Northeastern - 07:21.413
 
Sunday Schedule (all times EDT)
 
3V8+ Grand Final
9:04 a.m.
Lanes 2-7: Yale, Brown, Washington, Harvard, Cal (6), Dartmouth
 
2V8+ Grand Final
9:28 a.m.
Lanes 2-7: Dartmouth, Yale, Washington, Cal (5), Harvard, Brown
 
V8+ Grand Final
10:08 a.m.
Lanes 2-7: Northeastern, Yale, Cal (4), Princeton, Washington, Syracuse
 
Lineups
 
V8+
Coxswain - Luca Vieira
Stroke - Iwan Hadfield
7 - Angus Dawson
6 - Tim Roth
5 - Ollie Maclean
4 - Gennaro di Mauro
3 - Gus Rodriguez
2 - Frederik Breuer
Bow - Campbell Crouch
 
2V8+
Coxswain - Iliad Izadi
Stroke - Tommy Barrell
7 - Elliott Kemp
6 - Tobias Kristensen
5 - Fred Roper
4 - Balthasar Issa
3 - Matthew Gallagher
2 - Daton Wolfaardt
Bow - Wilson Morton
 
3V8+
Coxswain - Ethan Nghiem
Stroke - Dan Bradbery
7 - Keith Ryan
6 - Alex Baroni
5 - Matthew Waddell
4 - Thomas Heerding
3 - Luciano Andreuccetti
2 - Tyler Kurth
Bow - Pablo Moreno
 
4V+
Coxswain - Savannah Adamo
4 - Bret Holt
3 - Harry Manton
2 - Henry Furrer
1 - Joshua Anderson
 
STAY POSTED
For further coverage of Cal men's rowing, follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalMrowing), Instagram (@calmrowing) and Facebook (Cal Crew).