May 29, 2013
WATCH the IRA Championships live
2013 IRA Championships Schedule 
STANFORD, Calif. - Stanford men's rowing returns to Lake Natoma this weekend for the 2013 IRA Championships, set for May 31-June 2.
The Cardinal will enter two boats into the competition, the I and II Eights.
"Our men are so excited to be one of the top-seeded crews," said Stanford head coach Craig Amerkhanian. "Years of work are creating great opportunities for our squad. The heats tomorrow morning will be fast and competitive. We are all filled with positive energy and have visions of 'block S boat speed.'"
Fans can watch all of the IRA Championships action live online at http://d3cast.com/rowing/.
The I Eight, ranked fourth in the nation and coming off of two impressive performances in a row, most recently a silver medal-winning effort at the Pac-12 Championships May 19, opens up in the fourth heat of its class at 8:45 a.m. Friday against No. 20 Holy Cross, No. 12 Wisconsin, No. 5 Northeastern, No. 13 Penn and No. 21 George Washington.
The 13th-ranked II Eight will race at 9:30 a.m. in the third heat of its class against Ivy League crews No. 12 Penn, No. 4 Princeton and No. 5 Harvard.
The top two finishers in each class' heats will advance to Saturday's A and B semifinals. Boats finishing outside the top two of each heat will be organized into four repechage races set for Friday afternoon, from which the four winners will advance into the championship semifinals."We are excited to be back at Lake Natoma racing the best crews in the country," said assistant coach Jake Cornelius. "In the last few weeks we have revised our second varsity lineup in anticipation of difficult racing from the first stroke of our heat. Our men are excited to take some shots at tough Ivy League competition in tomorrow's racing."
Last year the II Eight turned in its highest finish at the IRA, qualifying for the Grand Final and comign in sixth. The I Eight took 14th in its class.