OAKLAND — UC San Diego men's rowing took part in the Ebright Invitational on Oakland Estuary over the weekend, with the Tritons' Varsity 8 and Second Varsity 8 each competing in two races Saturday and a third on Sunday. The Varsity 8 boat posted the sixth-fastest time (6:02.38) of the regatta, exactly in the middle of the 11-boat field.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
UC San Diego's Varsity 8 opened the weekend by taking on Washington's Third Varsity 8 (the Huskies' best boat at the competition, as their top two boats were in action elsewhere) and Santa Clara's Varsity 8 in the first race on Saturday morning. The Huskies finished first in a time of 5:56.94, with the Tritons just under six seconds behind in second and the Broncos a further five seconds down in third.
 
The Second Varsity 8 also took on Washington and Santa Clara in their Saturday morning action, finishing third with a time of 6:22.19. The Huskies' Fourth Varsity 8 took top spot in the race, ahead of the Broncos' Second V8.
 
By Saturday afternoon, there was a strong headwind, turning the waters of the Oakland Estuary choppy. None of the 11 teams came close to the times they set Saturday morning. In the challenging conditions, the Tritons' Varsity 8 got a one-on-one race with Cal's Fourth Varsity 8. Like the Huskies, the Golden Bears brought reserve boats to the event while their top boats raced at a Pac-12 Conference regatta. Regardless, UC San Diego could not quite exact revenge for their season-opening loss to Cal at the UC Challenge Cup, once again finishing behind the Golden Bears.
 
The Second Varsity 8 also got a one-on-one matchup Saturday afternoon, taking on Washington again. The tricky conditions did the Tritons no favors, and they could not keep up with the Huskies, despite their best efforts.  
 
On Sunday, the Varsity 8 took on the Washington boat that the Second Varsity 8 had been racing all day Saturday, as well as the University of San Diego's top boat. The Tritons collected their third second-place finish in as many races, ahead of the Toreros but behind the Huskies.
 
The Second Varsity 8 got their turn to face Cal on Sunday but could not keep up with the Golden Bear boat which had set the fastest time of the weekend (5:52.36) Saturday morning, finishing second in the one-on-one race.
 
QUOTABLE
"The boys and Bailey (Kim) had a good first race, they felt the start was one of the best they've done all year," Head Coach Sean McCrea said about the Varsity 8 boat. "We got a little rattled during our wind up for the final sprint, but quickly recovered and felt good about how we finished the last 200 or so meters. The second race was decent. Another strong start and first kilometer. We hung in there for a while but couldn't hold off the big second half push by Berkeley. It would do us some good to practice more consistently in windy, choppy conditions, because we definitely struggled with it today. (On Sunday) we were down off the start but kept our composure, executed the race plan, and came away with a decent result."
 
"Saturday's races were tough for the 2V8. We had to pull some younger athletes up from the third varsity just to make this weekend happen. Results aside, I think today was a great opportunity for everyone in the 2V8 to get some early spring season racing experience, especially the younger guys. You can try to simulate race intensity at practice, but there is no substitute for the real thing. Similar to the Varsity 8, in the 2V8 we need to keep our composure when the conditions aren't favorable."
 
LINEUPS
Varsity 8: Bailey Kim (cox), Kevork Tchakmakjian (8), Stuart Boynton (7), Archie McKirdy (6), Miko Brown (5), Michael Brown (4), Matt Schade (3), Thomas Wilson (2), Danny Jarotzky (1)
 
Second Varsity 8: Sam Feinberg (cox), Leon Friedrichowitz (8), Ray Gazzo (7), Christopher Cox (6), Christian Gaylord (5), Hayden McCormick (4), Jameson Godsey (3), Jake Lopez (2), Austin Newman (1)
 
UP NEXT
The Tritons return home to Mission Bay on Friday, April 15 for a dual against the University of San Diego and Temple. Racing is scheduled to start at 7:30 a.m. at the southwest corner of Fiesta Island in Mission Bay, with the finish line near the northwest corner.
 
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 90 percent, the highest rate among public institutions in Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.