Denis Poroy/KLC Fotos
Bears compete against top-10 programs Texas and Washington at San Diego competition.
WROW3/29/2026 12:47 PM | By: Cal Athletics
Bears Notch Pair Of Top-2 Finishes At Crew Classic
Cal Sees All 5 Entries Finish In Top 3 Of A Finals
SAN DIEGO – No. 10 California women's rowing had all five of its entries at the San Diego Crew Classic finish in the top three of their respective events on Sunday afternoon. The Golden Bears' third varsity eight and second varsity four each claimed second place in their events while the other three Cal crews came in third place behind No. 2 Texas and No. 5 Washington.
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Unlike the sunny conditions of the first day of the competition, day two brought heavy fog and stronger winds than the day prior as the boats took the water in San Diego. In the first race of the day, the Jessop-Whittier Cal Cup final, Cal's first varsity eight and top crews from Texas and Washington were chasing each other through the first 500 meters, with the three boats pulling away from the rest of the field early on in the race. The Bears did well to separate from UCLA in fourth place and took third in the event, despite hitting debris in the water that slowed the boat down as it crossed the finish line in 6:49.883.
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In the Karen Plumleigh Cortney Cup final, the Bears' first varsity four was aggressive at the start, battling for position with the Longhorns and the Huskies. Cal pushed into third place at the halfway point and did well to fend off UCLA in fourth place to finish in 7:51.162. Cal was only eight seconds behind Washington, which finished in second.
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The third race of the day featured Cal's 2V8+ in the Jackie Anne Stitt Hungness Trophy competition. The Bears were at the front of the pack, lined up with Texas and Washington as the race got underway. At the halfway point, Cal was chasing Washington, doing well to challenge the Huskies, but eventually settled into third place with open water in front and behind them. The Bears held off UCLA in fourth place, finishing in 7:07.667 to take the bronze.
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Cal's 3V8+ participated in the Women's Open 8+ Carley Copley Cup Final. The Bears were pacing the Longhorns at the start, but Texas pushed ahead as the finish line grew near. Cal was a few seats behind Texas in the final 500 meters and had about a stern-advantage over Washington's two entries in third and fourth place. The Bears held on to second place in the end, finishing in 7:06.082 with some overlap on Texas' boat and open water over the Huskies.
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In the Bears' final race of the day, the Women's Collegiate B4+ final, their second varsity four was sandwiched between Washington's two entries. Cal pushed into an open-water lead over the Huskies' second boat and maintained it down the stretch. Cal finished in second place behind Washington's top entry with a 7:51.78.
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"Although we didn't finish where we wanted to, for the most part, everything went according to the seeding," Cal head coach
Al Acosta said. "We had some bad luck on the first eight with some debris on the course, but there's a lot of positives to build on. Our 3V8+ had a very gutsy race, put themselves in the lead at the 1k and came up just short of Texas. We have Washington again in two weeks, which will serve as an excellent assessment of the progress we're going to make in 14 days."
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NEXT UP
Cal will return to Berkeley to prepare for its dual with Washington on April 11 at Redwood Shores.
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Lineups:
V8+
Coxswain:
Julia Fullington
8.
Olivia Roth
7.
Lily Abbott
6.
Minou Bouman
5.
Ella Wheeler
4.
Julia Irmler
3.
Lola Crampin
2.
Star Rose Miller
1.
Lotta van Westreenen
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2V8+
Coxswain:
Samantha Jaffe
8.
Giulia Bosio
7.
Charlotte Johnson
6.
Vittoria Pastorelli
5.
Allegra O'Sullivan
4.
Zara Hoadley
3.
Bonnie Mollee
2.
Alexandra (Alex) Pearson
1.
Lily Pember
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V4+
Coxswain:
Kira Obsitnik
4.
Vivi Spitz
3.
Chloe Frushtick
2.
Alexandra Ausfahl
1.
Annie Brown
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2V4+
Coxswain:
Emily Kendall
4.
Francesca Hammerer
3.
Pippa Jamieson
2.
Eve Barrancotto
1.
Kylie Landers
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3V8+
Coxswain:
Saira Mitchell
8.
Gabrielle Jennings
7.
Charlotte Hill
6.
Amy Furlonger
5.
Harriet Cheetham
4.
Beatrice Knight
3.
Kate Nixon
2.
Claire Banks
1.
Kylee Harrington
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STAY POSTED
For further coverage of Cal women's rowing, follow the Bears on Instagram (@calwrowing) and Facebook (Cal Crew).
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