SACRAMENTO – The No. 2 California men's rowing team was runner-up in the varsity eight Grand Final on Day 3 of the 2026 IRA National Championship regatta on Lake Natoma. The Golden Bears finished the course in 5:38.552, one second behind No. 1 Washington. Cal's third varsity eight and second varsity eight posted fourth and fifth-place finishes, respectively, in their races on Sunday while the Cal varsity four was crowned national champions on Saturday.
 
The chase for the national title was tight between the top four boats, with the varsity eight Grand Final coming down to the final meters. Washington edged out to the front of the field at the start with Princeton and Harvard chasing the Huskies at the first 500-meter checkpoint. The Bears made a move in the next quarter of the race to position themselves with the front of the pack and the bow balls were nearly straight across the first four lanes at the halfway point with Washington narrowly ahead of Harvard, Princeton and Cal. The Bears pressed in the third 500 meters to push ahead to the leader's position and get an edge over Washington. Cal was in control as it moved through the final 500 meters, but the Huskies stayed on it and inched ahead in the final strokes to put its bow ball ahead of Cal's and win the crown. Princeton outdistanced Harvard to claim bronze.
 
"I'm immensely proud of the race that the varsity eight put together," Cal head coach Scott Frandsen said. "It's a heartbreaker. They progressed so much over the last few weeks and absolutely produced their best race today. It was a very mature and brave race. They pushed into the lead in the last few hundred meters and were a few strokes away from winning the national championship, so I'm just so proud of that race and those guys."
 
In the 2V8+ race, all six boats were within three seconds of each other at the first 500-meter mark, with Cal in the fifth position. Princeton took an early command to the race with Harvard pushing it down the stretch and Washington and Syracuse just behind the Crimson battling for position. The Bears chased them down the course, but it was not enough to overcome the front of the pack. Cal finished fifth with a time of 5:48.787.
 
The third varsity eight pulled off the blocks into a battle for the top position with Princeton, with the Bears and the Tigers neck-and-neck at the first 500-meter checkpoint and Washington and Harvard in the hunt for third place. The Huskies made a move in the second 500 meters and took first place with Princeton in second and Cal and Harvard dueling for third place. The crew continued to push as they moved down the stretch, but Cal was unable to overcome the deficit and the Bears fell just shy of a podium finish in fourth place with a final time of 5:48.345.
 
Cal finished fourth in the James Ten Eyck final team standings, compiling 258 total points.
 
"As a program, it was a bit of a disappointing day as a whole with not getting our best races from our second and third varsity eights," Frandsen said. "But our goal every year is to put ourselves in a position to compete for national championships. For the four getting to win it and for the varsity being right there within a few strokes of winning, I'm still immensely proud of this team"
 
RESULTS:
V8+
1. Washington – 5:37.493
2. California – 5:38.552
3. Princeton – 5:40.230
4. Harvard – 5:41.588
5. Dartmouth – 5:47.143
6. Stanford – 5:49.608
 
2V8+
1. Princeton – 5:42.557
2. Washington – 5:43.612
3. Harvard – 5:44.273
4. Syracuse – 5:47.383
5. California – 5:48.787
6. Brown – 5:50.062  
 
3V8+
1. Washington – 5:44.345
2. Harvard – 5:45.018
3. Princeton – 5:46.395
4. California – 5:48.345
5. Brown – 5:51.443
6. Yale – 5:56.852
 
LINEUPS:
V8+
Coxswain: Michael Kain
8. Maximilian Pfautsch
7. Tobias Kristensen
6. Pablo Moreno
5. Alexander Baroni
4. Gennaro di Mauro
3. Noah Anger
2. Nemanja Luledzija
1. Tom O'Sullivan
 
2V8+
Coxswain: Ethan Nghiem
8. Leo Rosenquist
7. Eddie Bayfield
6. Osian James
5. Rory Menzies
4. Xavier Gagnon
3. Josh Knight
2. Tim Roth
1. Matthew Waddell
 
3V8+
Coxswain: Austin Chen
8. Mihajlo Dedic
7. Flynn English
6. Dan Bradbery
5. Nat Gauden
4. Evan Gold
3. Jeremy Beale
2. Thomas Heerding
1. James O'Meara
 
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