GOLD RIVER – No. 2 California had a dominant outing in its opening heats of the MPSF men's rowing championships at Lake Natoma on Saturday afternoon. The Golden Bears' V8+ and 2V8+ both won their heats in convincing fashion to advance to tomorrow's grand final rounds.
 
Sunday's competition will also include grand finals in the freshmen 8+, 2V8+, 3V8+ and V4+. At stake is the MPSF's first-ever conference championship which will go to the winner of the varsity eight race.
 
In the 2V8+ heat, Cal and Stanford were even with each other out of the gate after the first 10 strokes and remained close through 500 meters. The Bears made a move and were able to build a half-boat lead over the second 500 meters. Cal kept pressing over the second half of the race going ahead by open water by the time it entered the final 500 meters and coasted to the win in a time of 6:03.002.
 
In the V8+ heat, Cal got off to a fast start and picked up a half-boat lead over Stanford through 500 meters to lead the pack. The Bears' lead over the Cardinal quickly grew to open water by the time the boats hit the 1,000-meter mark and they were able to keep that advantage throughout the remainder of the race to win in a time of 5:53.132 – the fastest time of the day.
 
Sunday Schedule (all times PT)
 
9 a.m. – Freshmen 8+ grand final
9:12 a.m. – V4+ grand final
9:24 a.m. – 3V8+ grand final
9:48 a.m. – 2V8+ grand final
10:12 a.m. V8+ grand final
 
Saturday Results
 
V8+ heat 2
1. Cal - 5:53.132
2. Stanford – 5:57.695
3. UC San Diego – 6:14.081
4. Santa Clara – 6:22.980
 
2V8+ heat 2
1. Cal – 6:03.002
2. Stanford – 6:08.528
3. Santa Clara – 6:28.347
4. Gonzaga – 6:32.086
 
Lineups
 
V8+
Coxswain: Iliad Izadi
8. Frederik Breuer
7. Angus Dawson
6. Tobias Kristensen
5. Tim Roth
4. Gennaro di Mauro
3. Harry Manton
2. Noah Anger
1. Pablo Moreno
 
2V8+
Coxswain: Ethan Nghiem
8. Louis Nares
7. Robbie Prosser
6. Alexander Baroni
5. Leonard Brahms
4. Rory Menzies
3. Jeremy Beale
2. Thomas Heerding
1. Wilson Morton
 
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