LAKE NATOMA, Calif. — For the fourth straight time, UC San Diego men's rowing's Varsity 8 took top spot at the Western Sprints on Lake Natoma Saturday morning, earning the Tritons an automatic bid to the Intercollegiate Rowing Association National Championships at the beginning of June. The Tritons' Second Varsity 8 finished third.
 
UC San Diego's top boat came home in a time of 6:05.6, 2.8 seconds clear of second-place Santa Clara on Saturday, securing their fourth straight Western Sprints crown, having won in 2021, 2019, and 2018 (the event was cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Gonzaga took third with a time of 6:16.1, and the University of San Diego rounded out the field in fourth with a time of 6:21.1.
 
The Second Varsity 8 also entered Saturday's action with wins in the last three Western Sprints but was unable to extend their streak, finishing third in a time of 6:27.9, behind Santa Clara (6:21.3) and Gonzaga (6:22.7). USD's Second V8 did not start the race.
 
With the Varsity 8's win, UC San Diego has booked its fifth straight trip to the IRA National Championships.
 
QUOTABLE
"It was a great race and a great performance from the Varsity 8," Head Coach Sean McCrea said. "We knew we could not take any of our competitors for granted, we knew it'd be a tough race, and it was. Hats off to Santa Clara for pushing us from start to finish, they really had a gutsy effort and made us work for it the entire 2000 meters."

"We are extremely proud of the Second Varsity 8 boat and what they were able to do today. It wasn't a winning result, but they had one of their best rows of the season and left it all out on the water. For the past month, the lineup has been a carousel with guys being sick, injured, etc… so for them to endure being in a constant state of instability during the weeks leading up to now, and to go out and give an effort like they did is beyond commendable. The lineup consisted of six freshman, one junior, and two seniors. Needless to say, we are very optimistic about the future. Today's result will sting for a while but we're a young and resilient team, I've got no doubt that we'll bounce back and continue to improve."
 
LINEUPS
Varsity 8: Sam Feinberg (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: Tommy Morehouse (Cox), Jake Lopez (8), Christian Gaylord (7), Hayden McCormick (6), Jameson Godsey (5), Sean Romero (4), Christen Xie (3), Michael McMaster (2), Austin Newman (1)
 
UP NEXT
The Varsity 8's victory automatically qualifies UC San Diego's entire team for the IRA National Championships. The Tritons will travel to Lake Windsor, just outside of Princeton, New Jersey for the championship regatta, June 3-5.
 
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.