VANCOUVER, Wash. – The No. 12 Stanford men’s rowing team had three races against No. 18 Oregon State on Sunday and in all three the margin between the two boats was less than three seconds.
“We had a working weekend with some fast racing at Washington on Saturday and three really close races against Oregon State today,” said head coach Craig Amerkhanian. “We led in all three races today and were disappointed that we lost two of them, but credit goes to Oregon State for fighting back on us. There was great effort by both teams.”
The Cardinal varsity eight emerged victorious in the final race of the morning. Stanford posted a time of 5:49.49 after leading from start to finish. Oregon State followed the Cardinal across the finish line with a time of 5:51.95.
"Oregon State has the strongest crew they have had since I have been at Stanford and I feel like we have the most talent in our boat in my four years," said senior Austin Hack. "It was a good race and we continue to improve."
This marked the third weekend of racing for Stanford, who is still putting the pieces together. With four freshmen in the varsity eight there has been a learning curve, but the group is starting to figure it out.
"It is a big difference between high school and college rowing," said Hack. "The guys on our team with more experience are trying to bring the other guys along. We are learning to race our race and stay within ourselves."
The JV eight race went to Oregon State by a margin of just 2.1 seconds. Stanford led for the majority of the race, but the Beavers rallied late to overtake them in the final 20 meters.
Stanford fielded a frosh eight in the first race of the day. The group of newcomers squared off against Oregon State’s 3V8. Just like the 2V8, the Cardinal freshmen were overtaken near the finish for the one-second victory. Stanford had a time of 6:06.64, while Oregon State posted a 6:05.61.
The Cardinal will be at home for the first time this season as they host the Stanford Invitational this Friday and Saturday. A full racing schedule will be made available on gostanford.com once finalized.
"It is always a great weekend when we are at home on the course we practice on all the time and see familiar faces," said Hack. "It is also fun to see teams we might not otherwise see."
Oregon State Dual
Lake Vancouver
Vancouver, Wash.
April 13, 2014
Results
Frosh Eight
1. Oregon State 3V8 - 6:05.61
2. Stanford – 6:06.64
JV Eight
1. Oregon State – 6:03.21
2. Stanford – 6:05.31
Varsity Eight
1. Stanford – 5:49.49
2. Oregon State – 5:51.95