April 7, 2012
SEATTLE, Wash. - Ninth-ranked Stanford men's rowing split the weekend's action in Seattle, falling to No. 2 Washington before defeating No. 18 Oregon State.
The Huskies swept wins in the I and II Eights and Frosh Eights Saturday. The Cardinal will return to action Sunday, traveling to Corvallis, Ore. to take on No. 18 Oregon State.
"Our Varstiy Eight raced to win, we were one seat up at 500 meters, 1:20 into the race, and still exchanging punches through the two-minute mark," said men's rowing head coach Craig Amerkhanian. "I was proud of the audacious effort the men put forth. Our goal now is to extend our base speed as we ramp up for next weekend's Pac-12 Challenge/Stanford Invite at Redwood Shores. The Huskies were exceptional today. We pressed to race with the top team in the country and discovered our limits on April 7. Now we will work to improve, expand and express over the next four weeks as we prepare for the Pac-12 Championship".
The men's I Eights led off the day's competition, with Washington crossing the line in 5:40.78 and the Cardinal crossing 15 seconds later in a time of 5:55.61.
An hour later, it was the Frosh Eights' turns on the water. Stanford's crew crossed the line in 6:20.68, while Washington captured the race in 5:48.09.
The II Eights ended the duels with the Huskies, with Stanford (6:08.03) coming in second to Washington's winning time of 5:46.30.
However, the Cardinal ended its weekend on a high note, grabbing a pair of wins in the I and II Eight races against No. 18 Oregon State.
The I Eight raced to a nearly five-second win over the Beaver I Eight, crossing the line in 5:55.0, while the II Eight's winning time of 6:28.5 was 10 seconds faster than its Oregon State counterpart.
The Frosh Eight made a game effort, but could not overcome the Beaver Frosh Eight, its time of 6:45.3 ending up just under eight seconds back of OSU.
"The afternoon race with Oregon State provided us with another work and race experience," Amerkhanian said. "We jetted out to a two-length lead in the first 500 meters and held the Beavers at bay for the remainder of the race. All in all, a great day of racing for all of our shells as we survived 15-mile-per-hour late afternoon cross winds. The frosh 8 didn't fare so well in their midweight shell, almost sinking and losing the rudder late in the race. Our second varsity raced with pride and passion as they handled the conditions and OSU well."
Stanford returns to action at the Pac-12 Challenge/Stanford Invitational next Saturday and Sunday at Redwood Shores. The event will feature the Cardinal as well as California, Oregon State, Orange Coast College, Santa Clara, UC Davis, UC San Diego, University of San Diego and Wisconsin.