May 29, 2010

GOLD RIVER - No. 3 California women's crew advanced all three boats to Sunday's finals at the NCAA Women's Division I Rowing Championships after Saturday morning's semifinals at Lake Natoma in Gold River, Calif., with the Golden Bears' varsity 4+ winning its heat. The Cal varsity 8+ came in second and the second varsity 8+ finished third. The top three boats in each semifinal automatically qualified for the grand finals; the bottom three boats move on to the petite finals.

"The semifinals are always very tight and have some great racing," head coach Dave O'Neill said. "That was certainly the case today, and I'm really proud of our team for getting all crews into the grand final. That was a very important step, and it wasn't easy. The V8 had a terrific race, and tomorrow's final should be epic."

Cal's varsity 8+ rowed in the first semifinal heat this morning and found itself in third place after the first two splits. In the third split, the Bears were able to take a slim lead over second-place Virginia. While Cal maintained that lead over the Cavaliers at the finish line, it was Yale that sped past both teams to the finish line, defeating Cal, 6:16.54-6:16.60. It was the first time Cal's varsity 8+ wasn't victorious this season.

Cal also rowed in the first semifinal heat in the second varsity 8+ race, taking third behind first-place Brown (6:27.84) and second-place Virginia. The Bears were in second for half of the race, trailing Brown, before Virginia caught up to them in the third split and just edged past them at the finish line for second, 6:32.79-6:32.89.

The lone victory on the day for Cal came in the varsity 4+. The Bears led the race from start to finish, topping second-place Washington, 7:13.22-7:14.41. Cal was able to hold off the Huskies after Washington closed the gap in the fourth split.

The three-day championship regatta concludes on Sunday.

"This is the most impressive and evenly-matched field I've seen in this event, and any crew can win it," O'Neill said. "We're looking forward to it and we'll give it everything we have. We've had a lot going on this year, and there are many sources of motivation and inspiration. We're going to do everything we can to make tomorrow a special day."

2010 California NCAA Championships Results - May 29

Varsity 8+
1. Yale 6:16.54, 2. California 6:16.60, 3. Virginia 6:17.69, 4. Michigan State 6:23.97, 5. UCLA 6:27.21, 6. Washington 6:32.46

Second Varsity 8+
1. Brown 6:27.84, 2. Virginia 6:32.79, 3. California 6:32.89, 4. Washington 6:38.89, 5. Michigan State 6:41.18, 6. Yale 6:46.82

Varsity 4+
1. California 7:13.22, 2. Washington 7:14.41, 3. Brown 7:17.73, 4. Stanford 7:21.36, 5. Michigan State 7:24.54, 6. Yale 7:27.23