STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford men's rowing completed the 2018 season with a bronze team finish in the Pac-12 Championships and an 11th-place finish at the Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) Championships.
BRONZE FINISH AT PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIPS
Improving on last year's fourth-place finish, the Cardinal earned the bronze as a team in this year's Pac-12 Championships, which were held at Lake Natoma in Golden River, California.
Stanford's then eighth-ranked varsity eight boat collected the bronze with a time of 06:09.293. The Cardinal took third by open water, outpacing the Beavers' time of 06:17.323. Washington won the race, using a time of 05:51.243 to outlast the second-place Golden Bears, whose second-place time was 05:52.691.
Stanford turned in a time of 06:12.583 in the second varsity eight to secure another bronze finish. The Cardinal outpaced fourth-place Oregon State by 12 seconds. The third varsity eight recorded Stanford's third third-place finish of the day by outdueling Oregon State in the last 100 meters.
11TH AT IRAS
In the weather-shortened IRA Championships, Stanford's varsity eight placed fifth in the Petite Final at Lake Mercer in West Windsor, New Jersey. The varsity eight was in fifth early among a crowded field of boats in the Petite Final. The Cardinal tried to better its position, battling Boston early on. Stanford closed the gap to just six seats over the final 500 meters, but the Terriers held off the Cardinal at the finish.
VARSITY EIGHT SWEEPS STANFORD INVITATIONAL
Stanford's then No. 12-ranked varsity eight boat outlasted the No. 10 Wisconsin boat at Redwood Shores, highlighting a weekend sweep for the Cardinal. Stanford also posted head-to-head wins over Hobart and Georgetown in the annual, two-day regatta hosted by the Cardinal.
TWO NAMED ALL-PAC-12
Drew Taylor and Brennan Wertz were selected to the All-Pac-12 team for men's rowing. It was the second all-conference honor for Brennan Wertz, who was named the Pac-12 Men's Rowing Newcomer of the Year in 2017.
Wertz, a junior from Mill Valley, California, rowed every race in the Cardinal's varsity eight that was ranked in the top-15 all season long and placed third in the Pac-12 Rowing Championships in May.
Drew Taylor, a sophomore from Dallas, Texas, picked up his first all-conference honor as a member of the Stanford program. Taylor is also a part of the Cardinal's varsity eight boat, which recorded wins over Oregon State, Wisconsin, Hobart and Georgetown, among others, this season.
MOST STUDENT-ATHLETES ON THE CONFERENCE ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM
Headlined by nine first-team selections, Stanford placed 22 student-athletes on the Pac-12 Conference All-Academic squads, the most in the conference for the second year in a row. Last season, the Cardinal placed 20 on the All-Academic teams. Stanford has totaled 58 selections over the past three seasons and has placed at least 15 on the Pac-12 All-Academic Team in nine of the last 10 years.
The Cardinal's first-team selections include Martin Amethier, Ryan Buchanan, George Horrell, Nicholas Kingsley, Isabelle Morris, Will Nuelle, Will Spencer, Drew Taylor, and Guy Wuollet. Stanford placed nine on the first team in total, the most in the conference.
Ryan Cardiff, Johnathan Cogan, Jaisel Sandhu, Bart Scherpbier, Julius Stener and Brennan Wertz earned second team all-academic honors for the Cardinal.
Johnathan Cirenza, John Coffey, Allen Hosler, Joseph Matan, Allen Reitz, Daniel Schmid and Sarah Taylor rounded out the accolades for Stanford with All-Academic Honorable Mention selections.
AMERKHANIAN COMPLETES 18TH SEASON WITH CARDINAL
Stanford head men's rowing coach Craig Amerkhanian completed his 18th season at the helm of the Cardinal men's rowing program in 2018. A two-time conference Coach of the Year, Amerkhanian has coached several All-Americans and Olympians during his time on The Farm.