GOLD RIVER, Calif. – The Cougars’ second varsity eight crew finished sixth as Washington State University placed eighth as a team, matching its second-best finish in school history and best since 2008, Sunday, at the 2015 NCAA Rowing Championships at Lake Natoma at Gold River, Calif.
WSU’s eighth-place finish is its best since also placing eighth in 2008 and ties that team with the second-best NCAA finish in school history. The Cougars’ best finish came in 2006 as they placed fourth as a team at the NCAA Championships. The varsity eight placed ninth, matching its second-best finish in school history, also placing ninth in 2008 and finishing fourth in 2006. The second varsity eight finished sixth, its third-best finish in school history after finishing third in 2004 and fifth in 2006. The varsity four placed seventh, its third-best finish in school history after placing fourth in 2006 and sixth in 2013. The last two years WSU finished 14th as a team, as this marks its first top-10 finish since 2008.
“The team raced really fierce today and did a great job,” WSU head coach Jane LaRiviere said. “They did what they needed to do, there was no giving up and no letting up. I really think they made Cougar Nation proud, finishing in the rowing version of the ‘Elite Eight’.”
The Cougars finished with 92 total points, seven points behind Texas in seventh. For the third-straight year, Ohio State took home the national championship, compiling 126 points. The top three remained the same from last year as California finished second with 114 points, followed by Brown in third with 112 points. Washington (fourth, 110), Virginia (fifth, 104), Stanford (sixth, 100), Texas (seventh, 99), Washington State (eighth, 92), Yale (ninth, 86) and Michigan (10th, 84) rounded out the top 10.
The conditions were cooler and windier Sunday than the first two days of racing. With forecasted high winds, the race schedule got moved around, as all three Cougar crews raced more than two hours earlier than originally scheduled.
WSU’s second varsity eight (coxswain – Jenna Mangiagli, stroke – Noel Christiansen, Kellen Srb, Kayla Wakulich, Carter Marks, Jessi Howe, Sarah Steger, Emily Morrow and bow – Isabella Watt) was the only Cougar boat to make the Grand Final, racing out of lane six in the battle for medals. The Cougars held close to California in lane five for the first 1,000 meters, as the Golden Bears started to pull away in the second 1,000 meters. The Cougars finished sixth with a time of 6:39.720, four seconds behind California in 6:35.720. Brown won the even with a time of 6:25.990. WSU earned 34 points for the finish.
The Cougar varsity four (coxswain – Rebecca Burns, stroke – Tori Gerken, Katrina Tarrant, Megan McDonald, bow – Lucie Weissova) raced in the Petite Final out of lane one, racing for places seventh-12th. WSU jumped out to the early lead and never looked back. The Pac-12 swept the top three places as the Cougars clocked a time 7:24.361, nearly four seconds ahead of California with a time of 7:28.253. The Golden Bears were followed by Stanford with a time of 7:29.455. The Cougars earned 16 points with the seventh overall finish.
WSU’s varsity eight (coxswain – Sarah Wu, Ieva Adomaviciute, Mihaela-Teodora Berindei, Nicole Hare, Morgan Cathrea, Jordan Watson, Kim Coon, Savannah Davison, bow – Mickey Aylard) raced out of lane four in the Petite Final for places seventh-12th. The Cougars dropped into fifth place early, but surged into third by the 1,000-meter mark. The Cougars continued about a second back on second-place Michigan, but couldn’t catch the Wolverines, finishing third with a time of 6:29.013, earning 42 points for the team. Brown won the heat with a time of 6:24.727, followed by Michigan in second at 6:27.251.
The Pac-12 and Sacramento State Aquatic Center served as hosts for the Championships. Complete results can be found at NCAA.com.
2015 NCAA ROWING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Lake Natoma – Gold River, Calif.
May 29-31, 2015
Team Scores
1. Ohio State, 126
2. California, 114
3. Brown, 112
4. Washington, 110
5. Virginia, 104
6. Stanford, 100
7. Texas, 99
8. Washington State, 92
9. Yale, 86
10. Michigan, 84
11. Indiana, 73*
12. Princeton, 73*
13. Wisconsin, 65
14. Harvard, 60
15. USC, 45
16. Notre Dame, 41
17. Gonzaga, 37
18. Northeastern, 29
19. UCF, 25
20. Massachusetts, 21
21. Navy, 16
22. Jacksonville, 6
*Tiebreaker based on results place finish in varsity eight race.
Saturday, May 31 – Day Three
Division I Eights
Petite Final (Places seventh-12th)
7. Brown, 6:24.727 (48)
8. Michigan, 6:27.251 (45)
9. Washington State, 6:29.013 (42)
10. Indiana, 6:31.165 (39)
11. Princeton, 6:32.405 (36)
12. Harvard, 6:34.510 (33)
WSU Lineup
Coxswain – Sarah Wu
Stroke – Ieva Adomaviciute
7 – Mihaela-Teodora Berindei
6 – Nicole Hare
5 – Morgan Cathrea
4 – Jordan Watson
3 – Kim Coon
2 – Savannah Davison
Bow – Mickey Aylard
Division I Second Eights
Grand Final (Places first-sixth)
1. Brown, 6:25.990 (44)
2. Ohio State, 6:27.110 (42)
3. Washington, 6:32.050 (40)
4. Yale, 6:34.810 (38)
5. California, 6:35.140 (36)
6. Washington State, 6:39.720 (34)
WSU Lineup
Coxswain – Jenna Mangiagli
Stroke – Noel Christiansen
7 – Kellen Srb
6 – Kayla Wakulich
5 – Carter Marks
4 – Jessi Howe
3 – Sarah Steger
2 – Emily Morrow
Bow – Isabella Watt
Division I Fours
Petite Final (Places seventh-12th)
7. Washington State, 7:24.361 (16)
8. California, 7:28.253 (15)
9. Stanford, 7:29.455 (14)
10. Michigan, 7:30.335 (13)
11. Texas, 7:32.551 (12)
12. Notre Dame, 7:32.743 (11)
WSU Lineup
Coxswain – Rebecca Burns
Stroke – Tori Gerken
3 – Katrina Tarrant
2 – Megan McDonald
Bow – Lucie Weissova
