May 13, 2012
GOLD RIVER, Calif. - Stanford men's rowing claimed bronze medals in the team standings, I Eight and II Eight Grand Finals at the Pac-12 Championships Sunday at Lake Natoma.
The Frosh Eight took fourth in its Grand Final in the morning, while the Four took sixth.
Stanford earned 49 points based on its boats' finishes. Washington claimed the men's team titles with 72 points while California was second with 63 points. Oregon State finished fourth with 48 points, one behind the Cardinal.
"Racing well and earning third place in the first and second varsity races sets us up for a strong IRA," said Stanford men's rowing head coach Craig Amerkhanian. "Our frosh will continue to grow and improve and will travel east.
"The Pac-12 will represent well at the nationals, as Washington, Cal, and Oregon State will join us in Cherry Hill, N.J." Amerkhanian added.
In the I Eight main event, Washington, California and Stanford pushed off hard and created space ahead of the rest of the pack over the first 1,000 meters. While Washington added time to its lead, the Cardinal stayed within 4.5 seconds of California heading into the final 500 meters. The Cardinal were unable to catch the Golden Bears, though, and finished third in 5:57.7, six seconds behind California and 14 behind No. 1 Washington.
The day opened with the Frosh Eight race. Washington and California immediately separated themselves from the main pack, while Stanford settled into fourth place, locked in battle for the bronze medal with Oregon State. The Beavers and Cardinal were separated by nearly five seconds throughout the race, and would finish at that interval, as Oregon State's time of 6:11.7 was 4.90 seconds ahead of the Cardinal's 6:16.6.
The Four was up next, as Stanford's boat trailed over the 2,000-meter course, finishing sixth in a time of 7:20.2.
The II Eight competition featured just four boats, with the Cardinal hanging in the front pack with Washington and California over the first half of the race. The Huskies and Golden Bears would pull away over the third 500 meters, but the Cardinal would hold off Oregon State to take the bronze in the class with a time of 6:04.1, 15.5 seconds back of Washington.
The Cardinal will return to action at the IRA National Championships in three weeks. The IRA Championships will take place in Cherry Hill, N.J. from May 31-June 2.
Stanford Lineups
I Eight
cox Alex Topacio
8 - Alec Mcrae
7 - Austin Hack
6 - Ryan Sudeck
5 - Oivind Lorentzen
4 - Will Faulkner
3 - Dean Walker
2 - Peter Leemputte
1 - Jason Lupatkin
II Eight
cox Shane Hedge
8 - Will Dannemann
7 - Dave Dolben
6 - Chip Schroeder
5 - Reed Thayer
4 - Edwin Brower
3 - Andrew Boothe
2 - Cole Johnson
1 - Will Robins
Four
cox Jesse Shapiro Fr.
4 - Graeme Clements Jr.
3 - Sean McCluskey Fr.
2 - Karsten Lutz Fr.
1 - Aaron Stark Fr.
Frosh Eight
cox Sierra Manker
8 - Andrew Terajewicz
7 - Scott Roycroft
6 - Kaess Smit
5 - Seth Hildick Smith
4 - John Lambert
3 - Alistair Inglis
2 - Everett Watson
1 - Patrick Cirenza