NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – The California Golden Bears women's rowing team completed a perfect sweep at the California Challenge Cup at Marina Park on Saturday morning with its 4V8+ and 5V8+ winning each of the three races they competed in. The event featured 10 crews with each racing in rotating opponent two-crew races over approximately 1400m. Both Cal boats faced off against the opposing school's varsity 8+.
 
The 4V8+ kicked things off defeating UC Irvine's varsity 8+ by just under 20 seconds, which would mark its narrowest victory of the day, with a time of 4:35.149. It followed that up with its largest margin of victory, taking down UC Santa Barbara's varsity 8+ by over 30 seconds, finishing with a time of 4:32.432. The crew finished off the day with its best time of 4:32.03 in a win over Santa Clara's varsity 8+.
 
The 5V8+ crew started off the day with its best finishing time of 4:30.683 in a win over UCSB's varsity 8+, followed by a victory over Orange Coast College's varsity 8+ with a time of 4:36.38. It concluded its day with its widest margin of victory at just over 30 seconds, in a win over UC Irvine's varsity 8+ with a finishing time of 4:34.239.
 
"We were grateful for the opportunity to race against multiple teams so early in the season," Cal assistant coach Kirsten Girard said. "The team was excited going into this race, and it was great to see strong results across both of our boats. I think we learned a lot from this regatta and are looking forward to improving as we head towards the San Diego Crew Classic."
 
The Bears will next head to the San Diego Crew Classic at Mission Bay from April 1-2.
 
California Challenge Cup Results
4V8+
1. Cal 4V8+ – 4:35.149
2. UC Irvine 1V8+ – 4:54.861
 
1. Cal 4V8+ – 4:32.432
2. UCSB 1V8+ – 5:05.147
 
1. Cal 4V8+ - 4:32.03
2. Santa Clara 1V8+ - 4:59.127
 
5V8+
1. Cal 5V8+ – 4:30.683
2. UCSB 1V8+ – 5:01.335
 
1. Cal 5V8+ – 4:36.38
2. Orange Coast College 1V8+ – 5:03.496
 
1. Cal 5V8+ – 4:34.239
2. UC Irvine 1V8+ – 5:04.324
 
California Challenge Cup Lineups
4V8+
Coxswain: Hannah Khutorsky
Stroke: Molly Gold
Filippa Ljunggren
Savanna Jerome
Nicole Weber
Izzy Campbell
Catherine Swanson
Eve Barrancotto
Bow Seat: Carlie Stipe
 
5V8+
Coxswain: Cecilia Crowley
Stroke: Carly Wright
Katherine Iuliano
Claire Banks
Ella Lewerenz
Sidney Curven
Marte Skei
Ellie Kennedy
Bow Seat: Sydney Koutrouba
 
STAY POSTED
For further coverage of Cal women's rowing, follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalWrowing), Instagram (@calwrowing) and Facebook (Cal Crew).